Differences in Pelletized & Agricultural Lime

Lime Functioning

• Farmers use nitrogen-filled fertilizers for obtaining the best crop harvest. Over time, the nitrogen creates an acidic soil composition, making it more difficult for plant growth. Granules of limestone spread throughout a farmland's soil reacts with the nitrogen, neutralizing the acidity. Soil microbes and nutrients flourish for better soil structure and functionality.

Pelletized Lime

• Pelletized lime consists of ground lime enclosed within a polymer wrap, or lignosulfonate binding. Farmers spread the pellets out into the soil. The wrapping slowly disintegrates when it encounters water. The fine lime within the pellet releases into the surrounding soil, neutralizing the immediate acidity in the area.

Agricultural Lime

• Aglime is strictly ground limestone, although not as finely-ground as the lime within the pelletized version. Farmers also spread the aglime out into the acidic soil. However, aglime does not require a breakdown of an outside pellet structure. The lime immediately reacts with the soil's composition for gaining neutrality over the acidic ground cover.

Lime Choice Considerations

• Soil and lime react faster together when more lime surface area is available. Finely-ground lime reacts faster with the soil since it has more surface area exposed than a larger lime grind. The fine grind of the pelletized type may lead a consumer to believe it reacts faster in the soil compared to aglime. But the pellet's binding must disintegrate, causing the pelletized type to react slower than aglime, states the University of Kentucky.

Application Considerations

• The advantage of pelletized lime allows application through a machine, such as a hydromulcher. The pellets are literally shot into the soil with the machine's mechanism, creating a rapid application. In contrast, aglime must be tilled into the soil, requiring a longer application time.

Application Timing

• Typically, a farmer applies lime after a harvest is complete. However, larger lime particle sizes must be applied to the soil further in advance of planting new seeds for achieving the best soil neutralization. Lime reaction within the soil can last 5 to 10 years. Farmers should take soil samples every 3 to 5 years for evaluating the lime's effectiveness.