Liming

Liming is the most common and effective practice for reducing soil acidity-related
problems.

From: Advances in Agronomy, 2014

Related terms:

Cadmium, Magnesium, Biochar, Fertilizers, Toxicity, Fungi, Soil pH, Acid Soils, Soil
Organic Carbon, Limestone

View all Topics

LIMING
E.J. Kamprath, T.J. Smyth, in Encyclopedia of Soils in the Environment, 2005

Neutralizing Value
The neutralizing value (CaCO3 equivalent) of liming materials is related to the
amount of acid that a unit weight of lime will neutralize. The standard for evaluating
materials is pure calcium carbonate which is given a value of 100%. The neutralizing
value for pure liming materials is given in Table 6.

Table 6. Neutralizing value of pure liming materials

Material Neutralizing value (%)

Calcium carbonate, CaCO3 100
Calcium-magnesium carbonate, CaMg(CO3)2 109
Calcium oxide, CaO 179
Calcium hydroxide, Ca(OH)2 135
Calcium silicate, CaSiO3 86

The purity of the liming material must also be taken into account when determining
the neutralizing value. Most liming materials are not 100% pure. In many instances
the purity of the material will have been determined so that the buyer is given this
information. Lime recommendations are often based on 100% purity of the material
so that the application rate will have to be increased when the purity is less than
100%.

> Read full chapter

The Role of Mineral Nutrition on Root

Growth of Crop Plants
N.K. Fageria, A. Moreira, in Advances in Agronomy, 2011

13.1.1 Liming acid soils

Liming is the most common and effective practice to reduce soil acidity. Lime
requirements of crops grown on acid soils are determined by the quality of lim-
ing material, status of soil fertility, crop species and cultivar within species, crop
management practices, and economic considerations. Soil pH, base saturation, and
aluminum saturation are important acidity indices that are used to determine lim-
ing. Liming improves soil pH, Ca, and Mg contents and reduces Al concentrations
in the soil solution. In addition, liming improves beneficial microbe populations
in the soil. Furthermore, liming improves P concentration in the soil solution by
reducing P immobilization by Fe and Al in acid soils (Fageria and Baligar, 2008). All
these beneficial effects of liming improve the root growth of crop plants. Nurlaeny
et al. (1996) found that liming increased shoot dry weight, total root length, and
mycorrhizal colonization of roots in soybean and corn grown on tropical acid soils.
Gonzalez (1976) reported that incorporation of lime to a 30 cm soil depth allowed
the corn roots to penetrate and use stored water throughout the lime layer. Data in
Table 12 show that liming increases soil pH and consequently, the root dry weight
of dry bean grown on a Brazilian Oxisol. Similarly, Figs. 45 and 46 show how the
root growth of dry bean and soybean is influenced by soil pH. The root growth of
both the legumes was significantly influenced by increasing soil pH. Dry bean root
growth was maximum at pH 5.9 and soybean produced vigorous root systems at pH
6.4.

Table 12. Influence of soil pH on root growth of dry bean grown on a Brazilian Oxisol

Soil pH in H2O Root dry weight (g per 4 plants)

4.1 1.90
4.7 3.58
5.3 4.67
5.9 5.40
6.6 4.73
7.0 3.80
R2 0.99**

** Significant at the 1% probability level.

Source: Adapted from Fageria (2002b).

Figure 45. Root growth of dry bean grown on a Brazilian lowland soil (Inceptisol;
Fageria and Stone, 1999).

Figure 46. Root growth of soybean in a Brazilian lowland soil (Inceptisol) at different
pH.

> Read full chapter

Factors influencing elemental micronu-

trient supply from pasture systems for
grazing ruminants
P.T. Kao, ... M.R.F. Lee, in Advances in Agronomy, 2020

6.7.2 Liming
Liming is carried out on land where low soil pH may impede the growth of crops,
including grass, due to the reduced mobility of most metals. However, Heal (2001)
found that more Mn was leached from limed soils than un-limed soils but the reason
for this remains unclear. Apart from changing soil pH, liming can also reduce Cu
availability of soil by enabling precipitation of Cu-hydroxides and/or Cu-carbonates
(Brunetto et al., 2016). For non-metallic elements, liming may reduce available I
due to the increased pH (Lidiard, 1995). A long-term grassland experiment showed
that the limed soil had less TMAH (tetramethylammoniumhydroxide) extracted I
and Se than the un-limed soil (Bowley et al., 2017). The TMAH-extractable fraction
should include humus-bound Se and reactive inorganic Se associated with Fe, Al
and Mn oxides/hydroxides in soil, resulting in the assumption that the accumulation
of TMAH-extractable I and Se in the un-limed soil was due to stronger inorganic
adsorption at low pH (Bowley et al., 2017). The data showed that there was a
significant correlation between TMAH-extractable I from soil and that from the
plant (r = 0.464). By contrast, a negative correlation between TMAH-extractable Se
from soil and that from the plant (r = − 0.457) (Bowley et al., 2017) was found,
implying that liming can decrease the availability of I but can increases that of Se to
plants (Bowley et al., 2017).

> Read full chapter

Soil organic carbon dynamics: Impact

of land use changes and management
practices: A review
Thangavel Ramesh, ... Oliver W. Freeman II, in Advances in Agronomy, 2019

5.4.2 Effect on SOC fractions and composition

Liming can also affect the distribution of SOC among different C fractions and,
hence, its turnover and biodegradability. For instance, SOC in limed soils was more
decomposed and more associated with soil minerals than in unlimed soils (Aye et
al., 2016; Tonon et al., 2010). An accumulation of partly decomposed material was
visible on the surface soil of unlimed plots (pH 3.5–5.7); however, liming led to the
disappearance of this surface layer (Rangel-Castro et al., 2005). Furthermore, humic
C fractions, which are believed to be relatively chemically recalcitrant, also undergo
gradual decline following lime application (Wang et al., 2016a; Yagi et al., 2003). The
declined stability of humic C is possibly due to solubilization, de-aggregation, or
desorption of humic substances from colloidal surfaces at higher soil pH (Garbuio
et al., 2011). Low pH accounted for the less transformed and partly decomposed,
with subsequent accumulation, of free and intra-aggregate light C fractions in acidic
soils (Aye et al., 2016; Tonon et al., 2010).

The chemical composition of SOC, which reflects either SOC stability or long-term
C sequestration mechanisms, might also change with liming. Ample evidence sug-
gests that DOC is more hydrophobic and aromatic in limed relative to unlimed plots
(Wang et al., 2016a). The aromatic signal in DOC is dominated by lignin-derived
compounds, which are highly chemically recalcitrant (Ramesh et al., 2018). More-
over, alkyl C, sourced from lipids, cutin, and suberin polyesters, is selectively more
preserved in unlimed than limed soils (Wang et al., 2016a). Reduced activity of cuti-
nase or suberinase at low pH may account for the accumulation of lipids or lipid-de-
rived fatty acids (Nierop et al., 2003) or cutin- and suberin-derived moieties (Nierop
and Buurman, 1999) during long-term SOC formation in acid soils. Alternatively,
change in SOC composition might be partly attributed to a lime-induced shift in the
aboveground vegetation and, hence, residues of different quality (Kraus et al., 2004).
Nevertheless, a few studies have revealed similar 13C NMR spectra of SOC between
limed and unlimed soils, indicating that liming had no impact on the chemical and
structural composition of total SOC (Tonon et al., 2010). Soil microbial communities
are expected to differ among soils with different properties, possibly accounting for
the observed discrepancies among studies. Further research is warranted to identify
possible factors that could potentially influence the long-term effect of liming on
SOC composition.

> Read full chapter

Homeostasis and Toxicology of

Non-Essential Metals
Rod W. Wilson, in Fish Physiology, 2011

6.1.5 Liming and Toxic Mixing Zones

Liming, the addition of ground-up CaCO3-rich rocks such as limestone to acidified
waters, has been used in numerous countries in Europe, the USA and Canada
for over 20 years to improve water quality in acidified catchments (Wright, 1983;
Schindler, 1988; Howells and Dalziel, 1990; Andersen, 2006). The dissolution of
added CaCO3 improves the bulk water quality for fish by increasing the water
hardness and pH/alkalinity. However, although the long-term effect is to amelio-
rate Al toxicity, the rapid rise (seconds to minutes) in pH occurring immediately
downstream of such liming practices results in an acutely toxic mixing zone for
fish (Rosseland et al., 1992; Poleo et al., 1994; Exley et al., 1996; Witters et al.,
1996; Teien et al., 2004, 2006c). Acute mortality of fish can occur in such mixing
zones, and is thought to be exclusively due to respiratory toxicity caused by the rapid
polymerization of monomeric Al (low molecular mass) to high molecular mass forms
of Al, and the accumulation of precipitated or polymerized Al on the gills under
these transient alkalinizing conditions (Oughton et al., 1992; Rosseland et al., 1992;
Witters et al., 1996; Teien et al., 2004, 2006c). However, the downstream zones of
high toxicity are limited in time and space owing to the rapid nature of the chemical
reactions, and ultimately the transformation of the high molecular mass forms of
Al to less bioavailable colloidal species (Teien et al., 2004). Nevertheless, significant
acute mortality can occur if fish encounter this zone (e.g. during upstream spawning
migrations) and fish that move back downstream as an avoidance response (e.g.
Atland and Barlaup, 1995) have been shown to recover more slowly in this region
than in neutral waters containing low Al (Verbost et al., 1995).

> Read full chapter

Environmental concerns associated

with explosives (HMX, TNT, and RDX),
heavy metals and metalloids from
shooting range soils: Prevailing issues,
leading management practices, and fu-
ture perspectives
Hafiz Muhammad Tauqeer, ... Muhammad Iqbal, in Handbook of Bioremediation,
2021

8.4.1 Lime based amendments

Soil liming is recommended to increase soil pH, because the mobility of metals,
in particular Pb, increases in acidic soils. Ahmad et al. (2012b) reviewed different
sources of lime-based waste materials, noting the main mechanism of Pb immobi-
lization by these amendments was closely associated with sorption and precipitation
at high soil pH. This measure is particularly efficient in the case of contaminated
acidic soil, whereas the effects of liming on the mobility of Pb in neutral or alkaline
SRSLs can be ambiguous. Liming has been reported to both decrease and increase
Pb mobility depending on the experimental conditions (Fayiga and Saha, 2016a). At
high soil pH, this mobility can be increased due to the formation and dissolution of
soluble organometallic complexes (Karczewska et al., 2015; Cuske et al., 2016), and
therefore the application of lime or dolomite can turn out ineffective to immobilize
Pb and Cu (Sanderson et al., 2018; Lewińska and Karczewska, 2019a). Generally,
smaller forms of limestone or dolomite (powdered, pelletized, and granular) are
better suited than gravely limestone.

> Read full chapter

Advances in Radiation Biology

A.G. Searle, in Advances in Radiation Biology, 1974

A Spontaneous Frequencies
Liming and Searle (1971) and Searle (1972) have reviewed information on sponta-
neous frequencies. It is normally impossible to tell in which parental germ line the
mutation arose, uuless it is an X linked mutation which appears in a son. Thus Lyon
and Morris (1966) reported a dominant mutation to sex linked Ta in their control
series and concluded that it must have occurred in a female parent, since one of the
two mutant offspring was a Ta male. As Table XVI shows, the overall spontaneous
frequency, estimated from the control side of radiation experiments, is 1.6 × 10−5 per
mouse examined, or 0.8 × 10−5 per gamete. In addition, Schlager and Dickie (1971)
reported that fifty four dominant visible mutations had been detected in stocks at
the Jackson Laboratory between 1963 and 1969. They estimated that there were
10,452,062 tested gametes with respect to mutations affecting coat color (which
could not be scored on an albino background) and 14,021,464 tested gametes with
respect to mutations affecting other characters, such as tail or legs. The mutation
frequency was 0.4 × 10−6/locus with respect to the twelve loci at which mutations
were detected. If this is multiplied by twelve, the resultant per gamete estimate of
4.8 × 10−6 is in reasonably good agreement with that derived from the control side
of radiation experiments.

Table XVI. Frequencies of Dominant Visible Mutations in Control Experiments

Number of mice tested Number of mutations Loci involved References

117,727 2 Mo, T Carter et al. (1958),
Lyon (1959b, 1960)

2,640 0 - Charles et al. (1960)

854 0 -
 Carter and Lyon
(1961)
4,290 0 - Lyon et al. (1964)
3,519 0 - Phillips and Searle
(1964)
37,813 0 - Batchelor et al.
(1969)
20,769 1 Ta Lyon and Morris
(1969)
Overall frequency = 0.8 ×10 per gamete

Individual loci vary widely in their spontaneous mutabilities. If the results of Schlager
and Dickie (1971) are combined with those of Table XVI, the frequencies of mutation
at the twelve loci involved are as follows for the fifty seven events: W, 23; Sp, 12;
Mo/To, 8; SI, 5; Ta, 2; Bn, 1; Hx, 1; Lm, 1; Re, 1; Rv, 1; T, 1; Xt, 1. The Mo and To
sex linked loci have been combined because they are probably identical (Green,
1966). Schlager and Dickie estimated that the mutation frequency at the most
mutable locus (W) was 2.2 × 10−6/gamete, which is about one quarter the average
frequency per specific locus in male mice (Table II). Since about seventy five loci
are now known in the mouse at which dominant visible mutations have occurred
(Searle, 1972), it is clear that the frequencies at most of the loci capable of mutation
to dominant visibles must be very low indeed. The average spontaneous mutation
frequency to dominant visibles may well be less than 10−7/locus.

> Read full chapter

Soils and soil management

H.J.S. Finch, ... G.P.F. Lane, in Lockhart and Wiseman's Crop Husbandry Including
Grassland (Eighth Edition), 2002

2.6.1.5 Cost
The cost of liming is largely dependent on the transport costs from the lime works
to the farm. By dividing the cost per tonne of the liming material by the figure for
the neutralising value, the unit cost is obtained. In this way it is possible to compare
the costs of the various liming materials. Most farmers now use ground limestone
or chalk and arrange for it to be spread mechanically by the suppliers. Where large
amounts are required (over 7 t/ha) it may be preferable to apply it in two dressings,
e.g. half before and half after ploughing.
> Read full chapter

Soils and soil management

H.J.S. Finch, ... G.P.F. Lane, in Lockhart & Wiseman’s Crop Husbandry Including
Grassland (Ninth Edition), 2014

Cost
The cost of liming is largely dependent on the transport costs from the lime works
to the farm. By dividing the cost per tonne of the liming material by the figure for
the neutralising value, the unit cost is obtained. In this way it is possible to compare
the costs of the various liming materials. Most farmers now use ground limestone
or chalk and arrange for it to be spread mechanically by the suppliers. Where large
amounts are required (over 7 t/ha) it may be preferable to apply it in two dressings,
e.g. half before and half after ploughing, to ensure more even distribution through
the soil.

> Read full chapter

Remediating Cadmium-Contaminated
Soils by Growing Grain Crops Using In-
organic Amendments
Muhammad Zia-ur-Rehman, ... Muhammad Nadeem, in Soil Remediation and
Plants, 2015

Metals Response to Calcium Containing Inorganic Amend-

ments
Initially primarily liming was done to ameliorate soil acidity; but now it is widely
accepted as an important tool for managing heavy metals toxicity in soils (Brown
et al., 1997; Bolan et al., 2003a). Liming materials include burnt lime (CaO), calcite
(CaCO3), dolomite CaMg(CO3)2, slaked lime Ca(OH)2 and slag (CaSiO3). Lime appli-
cation is a part of normal cultural practices in acid soils but it has also proved effective
to decrease Cd and other metals concentration in edible parts of many crops. It is
also a good source of Ca2+ for plants in soils. It increased the Ca2+ concentration in
soil solution on dissolution which is a well-known component of signal transduction
pathways in plants (Hepler and Wayne, 1985). Other alkaline waste materials such as
coal fly ash can also be used to decrease Cd uptake by plants. In such cases, effect of
liming materials decreased Cd mobility in soils and increased competition between
Ca2+ and Cd2+ ions for absorption at root surfaces. In soils treated with lime materials,
Cd can be precipitated as CdCO3 and Cd(OH)2 (Street et al., 1978).

Lime can increase the negative charge (CEC) in variable charge soils, form strongly
bound hydroxyl metal species, precipitate metals as hydroxides. Calcium released
from lime followed by plant absorption could inhibit the translocation of metals
including Cd from roots to shoots. However, there are evidences from some case
studies that addition of Ca-containing compounds (lime, gypsum) increased the
plant availability of metals in soils (John et al., 1972; Williams and David, 1976).
This was attributed to the exchange of Ca2+ with the Cd2+ on exchange sites and
the subsequent increase in Cd2+ concentration in soil solution which was subjected
to plant absorption. Precipitation of Cd as cadmium hydroxides or carbonates is
usually considered one of the major mechanisms for immobilization of Cd by liming
materials both in acid and neutral soils (Street et al., 1978; Pierzynski and Schwab,
1993).

The effect of liming on Cd immobilization and subsequent phytoavailability depends

on the changes in pH and Ca2+concentration in soil solution. Several studies showed
that the adsorption of Cd2+ increased with increasing soil pH (Naidu et al., 1994;
Bolan et al., 1999a) resulting in low phytoavailability of Cd in alkaline soils. The
equilibrium solution concentration at which zero Cd2+ sorption–desorption occurred
(PZC) decreased with increasing pH, which indicated that adsorption continued to
occur at high pH even at low solution Cd2+ concentration (Filius et al., 1998). A
significant relationship generally exists between the increase in pH-induced surface
charge and Cd2+ adsorption. However, only a small fraction of the pH-induced
surface charge (7–11%) was occupied by Cd2+, and the ratio of pH-induced increase
in Cd2+ adsorption. Calcium often competes strongly with Cd2+ for adsorption
(Boekhold et al., 1983), that results in decreased Cd2+ adsorption in the Ca(OH)2
treated soil and limited plant absorption.

Soil pH is one of the most important factors which control the heavy metal uptake
by plants (Seuntjens et al., 2004; Amini et al., 2005; Basta et al., 2005). Decrease in
soil pH results in the increased Cd uptake by plants especially in alkaline soils (Kuo
et al., 2004; Tudoreanu and Phillips, 2004; Tsadilas et al., 2005).

Adams et al. (2004) reported that grain Cd concentrations influenced by the total Cd
and pH of soils in 162 wheat and 215 barley samples. An increase in soil pH caused
an increase in the solublilization of organic matter, resulting in turn in an increase
in the concentration of dissolved organic carbon (Temminghoff, 1998). Bolan et al.
(2003a, b) showed a significant relationship between increase in pH-induced
 surface charge and Cd2+ adsorption. In alkaline soils, solubility and uptake of Cd was
facilitated due to Cd complexation with humic and organic acids (Harter and Naidu,
1995). Ionic composition of soil solution could greatly affect the metals, including
Cd2+ and its concentration in soils and plants (Harter, 1992). Ionic radius of Cd2+ is
0.109 nm which is closer to that of Ca2+ (0.114 nm) as compared to Zn2+ (0.088 nm).
Calcium suppressed the Cd ion exchange on smectite soils (Zachara et al., 1993).

It is obvious from the above literature that Ca-containing amendments can be used
for the remediation of soils with toxic levels of Cd. These amendments include
liming material such as CaCO3, CaO, Ca(OH)2 and gypsum (CaSO4.2H2O) which
cause insolubilization of Cd in the forms of CdSO4, CdCO3, Cd(OH)2, etc. Ultimately,
these amendments help to decrease the available concentration of Cd in soil thus
its uptake by grain crops like rice and wheat is limited, and as a result decreased the
expected hazards associated with elevated concentrations of Cd. So due importance
should be given to testing the effects of different rates of such amendments in
Cd-contaminated soils for a safe environment.

> Read full chapter

ScienceDirect is Elsevier’s leading information solution for researchers.

Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. or its licensors or contributors. ScienceDirect ® is a registered trademark of Elsevier B.V. Terms and conditions apply.