Agricultural Uses
Animal Feed
Aragonite has approximately 40% available calcium and is a naturally occurring predigested shell calcium source. The application rate of aragonite for feed supplement is:
For chickens while young and developing it is 1% of the grain mix.
For layers it is 8.75% of the grain diet.
For bovine it may be used from 1oz up to 4oz per head per day depending on the forages being fed at the time.
Turf Grass Amendments & Potting Soil
Oolitic aragonite is a highly pure source of calcium that acts as a pH control for turf grass amendments and potting soil and is an essential part of a healthy micro-nutrient formulation. Plentiful calcium increases tolerance to stressful conditions such as drought and close mowing. Oolitic aragonite is an exceptionally pure mineral, which is typically over 40% calcium and contains few impurities compared to conventional limestone sources. Aragonite has a unique morphology, which efficiently dissolves and delivers calcium to the soil. In a common soil where pH is 6, 65% of aragonite will be in the dissolved form. That far outperforms calcite at 10%, anhydrous gypsum at 28% and hydrated gypsum at 5%. In conjunction with its excellent delivery capabilities, aragonite acts a buffering agent with a pH above 8.2, an ideal combination for the cultivation of turf grass and potting soil.
Crop Fields
There are big benefits in the ease of spreading, in the fact that no dust is created due to the low minus 200 mesh material. The application of Aragonite is with large lime spreaders, truck casters or fertilizer buggies. To encourage the continual reproduction of the Aerobic bacteria, it is delivered with an approximate 5% moisture content. Distributes extremely well both dry and wet. Initial first application may be at higher rates to raise pH and to create a stronger buffer.
Application rates vary. Recommended for maintenance at:
400 pounds per acre for grasses and small grain
500 pounds per acre for soybeans
650 pounds per acre for corn
750 pounds per acre for back to back applications on corn
Fertilizer Enhancer
Oolitic aragonite is a highly pure, renewable and biogenic mineral, which is ideally suited to enhance fertilizer performance. Containing approximately 40% calcium and able to dissolve quickly, aragonite is a practical and efficient pH buffer. Further, aragonite has an innate ability to absorb nutrients deliverable into fertilizers, efficiently increasing their availability. This delivery mechanism is made possible because of a negative zeta potential in combination with a large surface area of the aragonite crystal. Aragonite also acts to neutralize volatilization of ammonia by reducing the hydrolysis of urea by delivering free calcium ions within fertilizers, thereby stabilizing the ammonia.
