Flowable Dolomitic Limestone (Liquid)

"A revolutionary new way to adjust pH in acid soils and pond water"

General Information
Webster's New World Dictionary defines lime as " a white substance, calcium oxide, obtained from limestone and used to neutralize acid soil" and Limestone is defined as "rock consisting mainly of calcium carbonate".

Please note that limestone is considered a rock and as we know, rocks are not readily soluble in water. Therefore, it must be ground to a very fine substance to neutralize acid soils effectively. With most granular agricultural limestone the fineness is limited to 30% to 40% passing through a 100 mesh screen. Southwest Environment Services Flowable Dolomitic Limestone is ground to a fineness whereby 100% will pass through a 300 mesh screen ( see particle size on guaranteed analysis label). It stands to reason that the fineness of this product would allow the pH in both soil and water to start changing in considerably less time than granular limestone.

Conventional agricultural limestone is usually applied in the fall and winter months. This allows several months for the granular lime to start breaking down to neutralize acid soils. Southwest Environment Services Flowable Dolomitic Limestone can be applied at any time of the year and is not restricted to seasonal application since it begins to neutralize acid soils usually within 7 to 10 days.

Hydro-Seeding With Liquid Lime
When a site has been prepared to hydro-seed and the specifications call for lime, what are you going to use? Are you going to have a spreader truck come and spread agricultural lime? Are you going to use a tag-along spreader and spread the lime yourself? What if you have severe slopes? How are you going to get even coverage? Most of the lime will end up at the bottom of the slope. Maybe you're thinking of pouring bagged limestone into your hydro-seeder and applying it along with seed, fertilizer, and mulch. Nope! Remember in times past when this was done, most of the lime ended up at the bottom of the hydro-seeder. Not to mention the abrasive abuse limestone can cause equipment.

These costly methods have been used since day one and have been less effective in raising the pH in acid soils. Granular agricultural limestone usually takes anywhere from 6 to 9 months to start working and by this time the fertilizer that was applied will long have been leached away. This allows for a very un-healthy stand of grass. We've all seen this happen.

Southwest Environment Services Flowable Dolomitic Limestone can be applied directly into a hydro-seeder and the fineness of this material will cause no abrasive damage to the equipment. Since it is already in suspension, it will readily mix with seed, fertilizer, and mulch which will allow even distribution over the surface area. You won't have to worry about it settling in the bottom of the tank as with granular agricultural limestone. And yes, it will start to work almost immediately along with the fertilizer to insure a more rapid stand of healthy grass. usually 2 1/2 to 5 gallons of liquid lime per acre will provide the needed benefits to raise pH in acid soils. As stated earlier, liquid lime will start reacting within 7 to 10 days whereby ag-lime takes 6 to 9 months.

Liquid lime is not to be used as a replacement for agricultural lime but it can be used to provide a quick pH change, therefore, allowing a much healthier stand of grass in less time. Proper maintenance should be followed and a soil sample is recommended.

Liquid Lime In Fish Ponds
Southwest Environment Services Flowable Dolomitic Limestone is a highly concentrated liquid lime that has shown remarkable results in fish ponds to raise the pH and to adjust the alkalinity and hardness of the water in a very short length of time.

I have been associated with liquid lime for the past 7 years and I introduced it to fish pond owners approximately 6 years ago. I must give credit to Mr. Clay Chappell, Southland Fisheries Corp., Hopkins, S.C. for his interest in this new product. He began experimenting with it on a small scale and found it to start changing the pH and adjusting the alkalinity and hardness of the water almost immediately. He then tried it in some of his smaller ponds and found it to be very rewarding compared to the "old-timey" method of shoveling agricultural lime in their ponds. Liquid lime can be applied at any time of the year. Usually the conventional method of liming take place in the fall and winter months. The reason being, it takes months for the ag-lime to start working whereby liquid lime starts working in just a few days. A lot of fish pond owners have neglected their ponds , especially when it comes to liming them simply because of the tremendous amount of work it takes to apply conventional agricultural limestone.

I've talked to a lot of fish pond owners and they have told me horror stories about putting a 4'x8' sheet of plywood on a jon boat, shoveling lime on the plywood, and paddling about the pond as they shoveled the lime in the water. I've heard how long it takes to apply 2 or 3 tons of lime per acre, and in some cases, even more.

The most remarkable feature about Southwest Environment Services Flowable Dolomitic Limestone is the amount needed per acre to start adjusting the pH, alkalinity, and hardness of water. Southland Fisheries Corp. will generally apply 5 gallons of liquid lime per surface acre and get results immediately. They said that before the introduction of this product, they would have applied 2 tons of agricultural lime per surface acre.

The use of liquid lime in small ponds has been very successful, but in a 50 acre lake it probably would be more feasible to use agricultural lime. The reason being is because in a larger body of water, the flow of water in the lake would be tremendous and the flow of water over the spillway would be a lot more. Where you have a large movement of water, the elements applied would be washed away more rapidly.

The application of liquid lime in a fish pond is very simple. A lot of fish pond owners have taken a 5 gallon bucket, poured a 2 1/2 gallon jug of liquid lime in it, and filled it up with water. Be sure to stir it well to keep it in suspension. Slowly pour the solution over the rear of a small boat into the pathway of the motor. Even a trolling motor will work. It would probably be best if you moved around the edge of the pond working your way to the middle. Pouring the mixture into the pathway of a small motor will disburse the lime more evenly throughout the pond.

Southwest Environment Services Flowable Dolomitic Limestone is not a replacement for agricultural lime, but in some cases it can save a fish pond owner a lot of work. There's a lot of ponds located in remote areas that would not be accessible for a large truck to deliver lime.