I have a few 1/4 acre plots that have an access road, but probably not accessible by lime truck. What are my options? Pelletized lime even though super expensive?

That's what I have to do on a couple of small ones I have that can't be accessed by the lime truck.

See if someone will load bulk lime in the back of your truck and then shovel it off by hand. It's not that bad if you're doing small plots. Use a big scoop instead of a little shovel.

500 lbs of lime on a quarter acre plot is equivalent to 2,000lb/acre. You're talking about 10 bags of lime per plot. That's not going to be super expensive. You're talking about low volume. I wouldn't even consider fooling with shoveling bulk lime. Pay a little more for the bagged stuff. The slightly higher price will be made up for in convenience of getting it there and handling it.

First step is to do a soil test it costs $7. Then you will know how much lime you need. Pelletized lime is much easier to speak on small plots.

What about the liquid stuff. I never used it but have heard people say they had good results.

Pelletized lime is the way to go for small plots like this. The additional cost for pelletized lime in such small quantities is insignificant and will pay off with convenience. I used a trimmer and walk behind fertilizer spreader this weekend to cut and lime a 250' x 25' plot this weekend. I'll prep another 3-4 plots at my club in the next few weeks this way. They make great hunting plots, especially for bow season and late season in the rut.

Amen to that! Dang, Harold, you trying to give ole' toothdoc a heart attack. You can buy pelleted lime for $3/bag if you buy in bulk. A pallet has 70 bags on it and weighs over 2800lbs, so take your trailer with you. If you don't want to do that then it will be $3.99/bag usually.

The way I’m looking at it is he said he had several small plots which means he’s likely gonna need a ton of lime before its over. From what I can tell it looks like bagged lime is about $3.50 for 40 lbs….Out the door that’s gonna be $200 for a ton…..bulk lime is like $20 per ton. That’s a pretty significant price difference. Shoveling a single ton off the back of a truck is not that big of a deal for a couple people. Me and some other guys loaded down 4 trucks at an old hunting club I was in one time with a ton each and shoveled it off.

Liqiud lime by grasshopper products is incredible! Works great and saves money. I use it when establishing new clover fields along with lime. Prefect for hunting clubs and small fields.

Liquid lime works, but is short lived. I would use it on a new plot along with pelleted lime.

Can you not get the trailer to your plots? Was this the same place that you had the clearing done?

yep. They cleared several larger areas (1ac) that I can get the truck/trailer to. I had 2 spots created that are about 1/4 ac each that I can get the tractor or 4 wheeler to no problem, but not sure about a truck. Especially a big lime truck. The st. Clair co-op said they don't rent the buggies any more, just bring a truck out and spread it for you.

Well, crap. That would've been super handy if they still rented a trailer. Good luck with your new place. I know you're excited about getting started.

I've got a lot to learn, but it's a lot of fun. We never did the food plot thing much growing up. We just hunted the woods.

Someone up thread said that 500 pounds of pelletized lime = 2000 pounds of bulk regular lime.

I have read elsewhere that it is 200 lbs pelletized = 2000 bulk regular.

What is the true ratio?

Links to authoritative source?

I spent the money on a rig like this. Bulk ag lime at the quarry is only $17 a ton.http://www.groundbusters.com/catalog/lime-spreaders

I'm thinking your referencing my earlier post but that's not what I said. I was saying that 500lb on a quarter acre plot is the exact same as putting 2,000lb on a one acre plot. I made this comparison because 1 ton per acre is a common recommendation for soils that need lots of lime. I was not suggesting any difference in pelletized lime and bulk ag lime. I don't want to get into the finer aspects of chemistry on this subject but assuming that both Ag lime and pelletized lime are both similarly pure, I think they'll have similar strength. I'm defining strength as "pH raising potential", not how fast it works. The finer the lime, the faster it works, as a general rule. It's possible to have two sources of lime that are the exact same strength but one works much faster than the other if it is ground finer. Does that make sense?

I have one of these. Might could help some people out. I have a skid steer, dump trailer that you could drop small piles at different fields. Don't know what the I could charge/

http://www.lillimer.com/aboutus.asp

I tried pelleted lime a few years ago and for some reason it didn't work. I put 900 pounds on a 1/2 acre plot that I had a soil test on. After a year I checked the soil again and there was ZERO change in the ph.

Timber, what type soil do you have? Is it sandy? If so, lime can leach thru sandy soil, especially with a lot of rain. Did you top sew or disk it in?

you read it wrong, dude. 500 lbs on a 1/4 acre would equivalent to 2000 lbs on 1 acre. Pelletized lime is roughly equivalent to ag lime only variance would be in the actual calcium content of each

I agree with Ron.

Last year I had the co-op drop off 10 tons @ $30/ton, which is their minimum. Hooked up a trailer to the Ranger and loaded a ton or so at a time and blew it off the trailer with a high volume back pack blower while driving slowly.Got 5 acres done in about half a day but most of that was travel and loading time.

Brad, I hope you had a tractor with a FEL. If you did that with a shovel, you a better man than me.

I broadcast it with my 4 wheeler and then disc it in.

Alas, no front end loader. Just me, my helper and a couple of shovels. I did make the helper blow the lime while I drove.He works for $10/hour and works like a mule when he is sober. The trick is catching him sober.Was real happy that day to pay him after he balanced on the trailer and blew/shoveled very dry lime all day.

Genius! I've set my backpack blower up on idle to forcefeed air into burning stumps, etc., before, but I'd have never thought to use it as a fertilizer spreader! ...I'm writing that one down!

The guy at a seed store told me that as well

not trying to be a smart arse, but in the future I wouldnt take any advice from that guy