Regarding dolomite and Mg, according to CEC notions, Dr. Albrecht and that
lot, the ideal Ca to Mg ratio is 6 or 7 to 1. However, it seems that God in
his infinite wisdom did not make lime in that ratio, giving us a bit of a
juggling act to do. Dolomite runs 2:1 Ca:Mg. All other limes run about
10:1 or higher, we can even get a 33:1 from the Franklin mine near
Nashville. Ca and Mg do different things inside plants, and at very skewed
ratios you can get deficiency symptoms, like blossom end rot in tomatoes
when the soil pH is as high as you would want it to be. Ca pushes soil
particles apart, while Mg draws them together. For this reason a tight clay
soil will be improved by the higher 7:1 ratio, but will become much stickier
if given only 2:1 dolomite. We did this the first year, big mistake. In
the end we used the 33:1 lime to drive the pH just a trifle higher than I
wanted it, but it brought the ratio back into line. Sandy soils will do
better with a 6:1 ratio to hold the particles a bit closer together.
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