Question

The soil in the field is highly acidic. List any two materials which can be added to this soil to reduce its acidity. Give two reasons for your choice.

Answer 1

Hint: When low soil pH begins to inhibit the supply of nutrients, limes are added. Lime restores equilibrium in excessively acidic soil, which returns pH to an optimal level of growth.

Complete answer:
Soil is a substance consisting of five ingredients: minerals, organic soil, living organisms, gas, and water. Soil minerals are classified into 3 classes of size- clay, silt and sand. Soil texture is defined as the percent of particles in these classes of size. The terrestrial mineralogy is various. Quartz is the most frequent mineral in soils; it makes beautiful, but not quite reactive, crystals. Soils are organic material in different decomposition states: plants, livestock and microbial residue. The percentage of organic soils is among the best indicators of agricultural soil quality.
Quicklime or calcium oxide and slaked lime or calcium hydroxide are the two materials which can be added to the soil when the soil is highly acidic. Lime is an alternation of soil made from ground limestone rock that contains magnesium carbonate and calcium carbonate naturally. Adding lime to the soil increases the pH level of soil and makes it more alkaline and less acidic. Though lime includes magnesium and calcium that are important nutrients for healthy growth of plants, it is not a substitute for fertilizer. The primary role of lime is to alter soil pH and balance soil acidity which can improve the availability of plant nutrients.Finally we can that the soil can be treated with bases such as quick lime (calcium oxide) or slaked lime (calcium hydroxide) to reduce its acidity. These bases react with the excess acid present in the soil and neutralise its acidity.

Note:Soils with high organic matter will also have a higher buffering capacity than those with low organic matter. Soils with high buffering capacity require a greater amount of lime to be added than a soil with a lower buffering capacity for the same incremental change in pH.