Is lime good for grass? Yes! Limestone can be a very beneficial soil amendment, and we’ll explain why.
The health of your soil is ultimately at the heart of your lawn’s performance. But pH is a factor that can really throw your soil health out of whack. That’s why it’s important to consider adding a lime soil amendment.
Here in the Seacoast region, limestone is particularly important for grass due to our naturally acidic soil. It can be difficult for healthy grass to thrive in acidic soils but lime helps to neutralize the acidity.
In this article, we’ll dive more into using a lime treatment for lawns so that you can understand what this soil amendment is all about.
Jump to:
How Does New England’s Acidic Soil Affect Grass?
What Does Lime do for Lawns?
How to Tell if Your Lawn Needs Lime?
When to Apply Lime to Your Lawn?
Benefits of Lime on Lawn
Choosing Lawn Care in Southern NH, Northeastern Massachusetts, and Southern Maine
How Does New England’s Acidic Soil Affect Grass?
As we mentioned, New England soil tends to be highly acidic. This can negatively impact your grass.
If you remember back to chemistry in school, pH is a way to measure the amount of acidity or alkalinity that is present. Soil, at its midpoint, has a pH of 7. This is neutral territory, meaning it is neither acidic nor alkaline.
The problem is when the soil falls too far into the acidic category, it can alter the chemistry and struggle with nutrient uptake. This can lead to deficiencies that cause your grass plants to struggle. Your grass could turn yellow, struggle to grow, and be more prone to problems with disease and pests.
It’s also problematic that many weeds can thrive in acidic soil, so you may end up with more weeds than healthy grass.
What Does Lime do for Lawns?
Using lime for soil health helps to balance things out. When the soil becomes too acidic, the limestone helps to neutralize it. This makes nutrients more available to your grass plants.
If you fail to adjust your soil pH, over time you might notice a more significant decrease in the overall vigor and color of your lawn. As your lawn’s health struggles, you might also notice an increase in problems.
How to Tell if Your Lawn Needs Lime?
Some potential signs that a lime soil amendment might be warranted is yellowing grass, weed pressure, poor growth (even with proper care), and moss. Moss thrives in acidic soil, so its appearance can be a warning sign the pH is off.
Of course, some of these issues can arise from other problems as well (particularly yellowing). The best way to tell what your pH stands at is with a lawn soil test.
At Seacoast Turf Care, we pull soil samples on all new customers and then every three years for our legacy clients. These results supply us with valuable information to make our decisions around a lime treatment for the lawn, including the recommended quantity.
It’s important to work with a lawn care company that uses science-based data to make decisions for your lawn.
When to Apply Lime to Your Lawn?
Lime can be applied at any time of the year. Since it helps to adjust the pH of the soil, this can be beneficial at any point. But fall is often the time it is most commonly applied.
This is mostly because it’s a good time to allow it to break down and start to work without being disturbed. It does take around a full year for limestone to completely break down.
Benefits of Lime on Lawn
The long-term benefits of applying limestone to the lawn will show up as overall improved vigor and health.
Since it does take time for the limestone to break down, it does not have an immediate impact. But, like so many other lawn care services, it’s important to trust the process.
Exactly how long it will take for lime to work does depend on what shape your soil health is in. If the pH is really out of whack, it can take some time for it to neutralize. But you will eventually see an overall healthier lawn when you incorporate this valuable amendment.
Choosing Lawn Care in Southern NH, Northeastern Massachusetts, and Southern Maine
We understand that having a healthy lawn is important to you. But getting the best lawn care results can be complicated. This is why it’s so valuable to work with a lawn care provider that uses science-based approaches to make the best decisions for your lawn.
At the end of the day, your lawn care success boils down to working with a company that will perform the right services at the right time. One of the biggest benefits of partnering with a professional is that you don’t really have to worry about all of this yourself.
At Seacoast Turf Care, we can make expert recommendations, use high-quality products, and use science-based methods like soil testing to help you make the best decisions for your lawn.
The end result should be the best possible lawn.
Want to learn more about what makes us a great choice for your lawn care needs? At Seacoast Turf Care, we service NH towns near Stratham, North Hampton, Exeter, and many more. Get lawn care pricing for your Southern NH, Southern Maine, or Northeastern Massachusetts property.
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