I'm weak on soil science, not an authority. I've picked up on some things from others. I'll give you my thoughts for what they are worth. In general, what works faster does so because it dissolves and moves through the soil faster. This generally means it won't last as long as something that dissolves slower and moves through the soil slower. A lot has to do with things like particle size. My thought is "Who Cares?" For a new field that needs a lot of adjustment (say 3 tons or more per acre), it is easy to select crops like buckwheat and winter rye that perform well enough even in soil with poor fertility. Keep in mind, adjusting the pH simply makes it easier for plants to uptake the existing nutrients. By the time you are in year two the lime has had time to amend the soil regardless of the type you apply. For an existing field, there is even less of an issue. If you check pH every few years (depending on soil type) and add lime when about 1 ton per acre is needed, again, most of our deer crops will do just fine and even better as the soil amends.
There may be some extreme cases where the difference between how ag lime and pelletized lime work matters. My soils are largely clay and lime moves slowly. If one had extreme sandy soil you may want to slow movement as much as possible. Few folks have soil that sandy. I'm talking so sandy that they have to add 3 tons of lime per acre immediately before planting both in the spring and again fall. With soil like that, I would probably focus on improving the soil and adding OM until the infiltration slowed rather than planting for deer.
So, when it comes to choosing between ag lime and pelletized lime, for most of us, there are two major consideration that outweigh all else. Cost, and the ability to spread. Ag lime is very sensitive to dampness. If the dampness level is just right, you can spread it with a regular spreader. However, you can never count on what the moisture content in ag lime will be. The only way to spread it other than by hand is to use a lime buggy made for spreading ag lime. They have a very steep V shape and have a chain drive at the bottom of the V that transports the lime out the back where it falls on the spreaders and is distributed. Pelletized lime can be spread with any broadcast spreader. The cost difference may depend on your distance to the quarry but in general ag lime is much less expensive than and equivalent amount of pelletized. In both cases be sure the check the ECCE when doing a comparison and figuring out how much lime you need.
In my case, my local coop will rent me a lime buggy for $50 per day. It is about 10 miles or so from my farm. I use my truck to tow the buggy full of lime back to my farm and then my tractor to apply it. The buggy I rent needs a pto to drive the spinners. It is ground driven so speed does not impact the amount applied. I could have the coop apply the lime using a lime truck. They will do that if I push for it, but most drivers don't like to do food plots. They have to drive from small plot to plot through the woods and do a bunch of backing up to apply it in small fields. This takes a lot more time than when they go to a farm and apply it to a nice big flat 20 acre field. I'm ok with that. The buggy is less expensive but takes more of my time.
Thanks,
Jack
