Lime Application Sheet
Start from a soil test. This sheet converts its recommendation into the product you bought - it does not decide the rate.
BFCBrilliance · bfcbrilliance.com/tools/garden-soil-ph-amendment-calculator
The arithmetic
- Actual material
- recommendation ÷ CCE x 100
- Scaled to your plot
- x area ÷ 1000
- 90% CCE product
- about 11% more than the rate
- 75% CCE product
- about 33% more
- Applications
- rate ÷ your single-pass ceiling
- 1 acre
- 43,560 sq ft — a factor of 43.56
- ⚠ The recommendation
- from a SOIL TEST, never a guess
- ⚠ Over-liming
- takes years to undo
- ⛔ Lowering pH
- different material, different maths
This application
- Date
- Area
- Soil test date
- Current pH
- Target pH
- Recommendation (units!)
- Product
- Product CCE
- PRODUCT TO BUY
- Bag size
- BAGS
- APPLICATIONS
- Retest date
Test history - the record that matters
| Date tested | pH | Recommendation | Applied | Product + CCE |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Before you spread anything
- Soil test done - not a guess, not last year's for a different bed
- Units on the report checked: per acre or per 1,000 sq ft
- Per-acre figure sanity-checked against the report
- Product CCE read off the bag
- Single-pass ceiling taken from the report or extension service
- Large rate split across applications months apart
- Incorporated rather than left on the surface where possible
- Retest date written in the calendar before you start
- Erring LOW rather than high
- Sulphur recommendations followed separately - not this sheet
Err low and retest
Under-liming means the pH moves less than you wanted, you test again and add more. Over-liming raises pH past the target, locks up iron and manganese, and takes years to come back - there is no quick way down. When in doubt apply less than the full recommendation and retest.
CCE is why the bag and the report disagree
A recommendation is stated in pure calcium carbonate equivalent so it means the same thing whatever you buy. Your product is not pure, so you need more of it: divide the recommendation by the CCE and multiply by 100. At 75% CCE that is a third more material than the report's number - enough to matter across a garden.