Why Lime is Important For Virginia Lawns

Adding lime to your lawn is a versatile task that can be performed at any time and is one of the most cost-effective ways to improve soil conditions. In Virginia, soil tends to be naturally acidic, with pH levels ranging from 4.5 to 6.3 in areas that have not been limed. While a pH of 5.0 might be suitable for blueberries and azaleas, it is not conducive to most lawns, which require a less acidic environment. 

Liming the soil serves multiple purposes. It helps make certain nutrients more readily available to plants, ensuring they receive essential elements for healthy growth. Additionally, maintaining the proper soil pH encourages soil microbes to convert nitrogen into a form that plants can easily utilize. As a result, homeowners can maximize the effectiveness of their fertilization efforts by ensuring the soil pH is within the correct range. 

By incorporating lime into lawn care practices, homeowners can improve soil conditions, promote better nutrient availability, and create a more hospitable environment for their lawns to thrive. And since liming can be done at any time, it offers flexibility in managing and enhancing the health of the lawn throughout the year. 

How do I know what my soil pH is?  

Soil Testing 

Virginia Green’s soil test will not only identify the soil’s pH and nutrient levels, but it will also provide a recommendation for how much lime (or not) should be applied to benefit the lawn. The lime requirement is not only related to the pH of the soil, but also to its buffer capacity or cation exchange capacity (CEC). Total amounts of clay and organic matter in soil, as well as the kind of clay, will determine how strongly soils are buffered. Buffering capacity increases with the amounts of clay and organic matter. Such soils require more lime to increase pH than soils with a lower buffer capacity. Virginia Green offers lime applications for our Premium Lawn Care customers and is included in Estate Lawn Care customer programs. If you would like to sign up – contact us today!