How to use Earth Juice pH 'up' to raise soil ph?

[CitrusHigh]

I've got soil that I mixed at home, it is a combination of manure/humus compost and peat moss. I've been having issues with yellowing leaves and somewhat gnarled leaves. I finally determined it was a pH issue and bought a very cheap pH meter. I'm getting a reading of between 5.5 and 6, depending on the particular pot, because I have different ratios of peat to compost in different pots. Today I measured the pH of the compost itself and it was somewhere between 5 and 5.5.

So my question is what is the best way to use Earth Juice Natural Up to raise the pH to where it needs to be? Today since something needed to be done I added some of the EJ Up crystals to a gallon of water until it read a pH of 8ish and fed a little bit of that to each of the plants. Also on some of my experimental plants that I don't expect to finish in time (all of my grow is outdoors) I sprinkled a small amount of the crystals on the soil around the base of the plant, not piled up at all, just in a fine dusting. Now it is storming and raining hard outside so they should be dissolved in to the soil now.

Any help is greatly appreciated, normally when I grow outdoors I'm using excellent soil and my biggest troubles are from animal pests, not nute issues!

 

[DiscoBiscuit]

IMO, several 8ish waterings will do little to treat, let alone fix the problem. While I've never used crystals, liquid pH adjustments seem to have a short (application) life.

I hope you don't mind the opinion but lime is as good as any dry, top dressing. It's also cheaper than dirt.

 

[CitrusHigh]

Oh that's good to hear, I didn't think I could use lime mid grow, I thought it would have to be mixed in at the start. Do I just follow the directions on the package of lime or do you have a recommendation? And how do I get it in to the soil? Just water it down in? Will do research in the mean time to see if I can answer these questions. Thanks!

I like your avatar!

Citrus

 

[DiscoBiscuit]

IMO, a top application is only only better than no lime. It's best mixed in, moistened and periodically turned for a few months before use. Mixed on the fly and used immediately is cool if in a pinch.

Package directions might apply, especially if it's indoor/outdoor specific. Watering in is about the only way to incorporate w/o root damage.

I'd avoid 40 lb bags of pelletized garden lime. Even if you pulverize the pellets, you'll get clay or the like along with lime. Get a box of powdered lime, dolomitic or "dolomite" if possible. It'll cost ~$7.50 and you'll need to be careful not to over-apply.

Be especially careful not to over-apply anything that boasts "fast acting".

Hydrated lime is an option but might be the easiest to over-apply. It'll dissolve in small amounts of water but it's difficulty to determine what you'll end up with on the pH scale. I'd be afraid to try hydrated unless the label had a pretty good ratios chart.