The British Survey of Fertiliser Practice* suggests that the steady decline in agricultural land area receiving lime in Britain appears to be reversing.
However, the survey also concludes that this area is still considerably less than that calculated to require liming. In addition, it states the principle causes of acidification have not lessened, and it is reasonable to believe that significant areas of arable land, and more particularly grassland, are at a pH level which could limit productivity.
*Organised and jointly funded by the Fertiliser Manufacturers' Association (FMA), the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) and the Scottish Executive Rural Affairs.
Proven over more than 70 years, LimeX is an easily spreadable, high-quality liming material ideal for the correction of soil acidity and general conditioning. It is suitable for agriculture, brownfield restoration and the built environment.
The fine particle size gives excellent reactivity and rate of pH correction. A recent reactivity comparison undertaken by British Sugar demonstrated LimeX70 to be significantly more reactive than competitor products. Other replicated trials in sugar beet have shown that an application of LimeX70 can increase yield by around 20% where pH is below its optimum level.
Click here to view above graph at a larger size
Click here to view above graph at a larger size
Click here to view above graph at a larger size
Click here to view above graph at a larger size
Click here to view above graph at a larger size
Furthermore, research undertaken by the Agricultural Lime Association (ALA) has shown the following responses during a trial to raise pH levels from 5.1 to >6.5 :
| Yield response to 1pH unit increase | |
|---|---|
| Year 1 | 9.2 (sugar beet) |
| Year 2 | 0.7 (spring barley) |
| Year 3 | 3.6 (sugar beet) |
| Year 4 | 0 (spring wheat) |
Source: “Agricultural lime – the natural solution” (ALA 2000)
Note: Reference the above ALA study, it should be recognised that sugar beet cannot be grown in a rotation frequency of less than one in three years.
Cereals, whilst less sensitive to pH are, nonetheless, highly sensitive to sub-optimal pH. In a long-term experiment at Rothamsted, results showed that a drop of one pH unit in barley, from pH 6.5 to 5.5, resulted in a 2 tonne/ha yield penalty (source: Johnston and Whinham (1980); Archer (1985).
Click here to view LimeX70 technical literature for Sugar Beet use.
Click here to view LimeX45 technical literature for Sugar Beet use.
Click here to view LimeX70 technical literature for Cereals use.
Click here to view LimeX45 technical literature for Cereals use.
Click here to view LimeX70 technical literature for Oil Seed use.
Click here to view LimeX45 technical literature for Oil Seed use.
or contact the Helpdesk (0870 240 2314) for hard copies.
A unique advantage of LimeX70, and an important one regarding overall farm costs, is the value of the nutrients integral in the product.
The information below shows the minimum levels for three important nutrients and their value to your enterprise using the Fertiliser Manual (RB209 8th Edition 2010) as a guide.
| Nutrient | LimeX70 (kg/tonne) | LimeX45 (kg/tonne) |
|---|---|---|
| Total P2O5 | 10 | 7 |
| Total MgO | 7 | 5 |
| Total SO3 | 9 | 6 |
At a minimum application rate of 5 tonne/ hectare (2t/acre) of LimeX70 the combined value of these integral nutrients is around £80 per hectare (inclusive of the savings in applying individual nutrients).
