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LimesulfurWikipedia,thefreeencyclopedia

Limesulfur
FromWikipedia,thefreeencyclopedia

Inhorticulture,limesulfur(Britishspellinglimesulphur)isamixtureofcalciumpolysulfidesformedby
reactingcalciumhydroxidewithsulfur,usedinpestcontrol.Itcanbepreparedbyboilingcalcium
hydroxideandsulfurtogetherwithasmallamountofsurfactant.Itisnormallyusedasanaqueoussolution,
whichisreddishyellowincolourandhasadistinctiveoffensiveodour.

Contents
1Creatinglimesulfur
2Use
3Safety
4History
5References
5.1Notes
5.2Bibliography
6Externallinks

Creatinglimesulfur
ANewYorkStateAgriculturalExperimentStationrecipefortheconcentrateis80lb.ofsulfur,36lb.of
quicklime,and50gal.ofwater(192gsulfur,86gquicklimeofhighpurityper1000g(1liter)ofwater).
Ca.2.2:1istheratio(byweight)forcompoundingsulfurandquicklimethismakesthehighestproportion
ofcalciumpentasulfide.Ifcalciumhydroxideisused,anincreaseby1/3ormore(to115g/Lormore)
mightbeusedwiththe192g/Lofsulfur.Ifthequicklimeis85%,90%,or95%pure,use101g/L,96g/L,
or91g/Lifimpurehydratedlimeisused,similarlyincreaseitsquantity.Avoidusinglimethatislessthan
90%pure.Boilforanhour,stirringandaddingsmallamountsofhotwatertocompensateforevaporation.

Use
Limesulfurissoldasasprayfordeciduoustreestocontrolfungi,bacteriaandinsectslivingordormanton
thesurfaceofthebark.Limesulfurburnsleavessoitisnotasusefulforevergreenplants.
Bonsaienthusiastsuseundilutedlimesulfurtobleach,sterilise,andpreservedeadwoodonbonsaitrees
whilegivinganagedlook.[1]Ratherthansprayingtheentiretree,aswiththepesticidalusage,limesulfuris
painteddirectlyontotheexposeddeadwood,andisoftencoloredwithasmallamountofdarkpainttomake
itlookmorenatural.Withoutpaintpigments,thelimesulfursolutionbleacheswoodtoabonewhitecolor
thattakestimetoweatherandbecomenaturallooking.[2]Becausethelimesulfurdoesnotcontactthe
leavesorneedles,thistechniquecanbeusedonevergreentreesaswellasothertypesoftrees.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lime_sulfur

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Dilutedsolutionsoflimesulfur(between1:16and1:32)arealsousedasadipforpetstohelpcontrol
ringworm(fungus),mangeandotherdermatosesandparasites.Undilutedlimesulfuriscorrosivetoskin
andeyesandcancauseseriousinjurylikeblindness.

Safety
Limesulfurreactswithstrongacids(includingstomachacid)toproducehighlytoxichydrogensulfide
(rottenegggas)andindeedusuallyhasadistinct"rottenegg"odourtoit.Limesulfurisnotextremely
flammablebutcombustionproduceshighlyirritatingsulfurdioxidegas.
Safetygogglesandglovesshouldbewornwhilehandlinglimesulfur.Limesulfursolutionsarestrongly
alkaline(typicalcommercialconcentrateshaveapHover11.5),andsoitiscorrosivetolivingthingsand
cancauseblindnessifsplashedintheeyes.

History
Limesulfurisbelievedtobetheearliestsyntheticchemicalusedasapesticide,beingusedinthe1840sin
FrancetocontrolgrapevinepowderymildewUncinulanecator,whichhadbeenintroducedfromtheUSA
in1845andreducedwineproductionby80%.In1886itwasfirstusedinCaliforniatocontrolSanJose
scale.Commencingaround1904,commercialsuppliersbegantomanufacturerlimesulfurpriortothat
time,gardenerswereexpectedtomanufacturetheirown.Bythe1920sessentiallyallcommercialorchards
inwesterncountrieswereprotectedbyregularsprayingwithlimesulfur.Howeverbythe1940s,limesulfur
begantobereplacedbysyntheticorganicfungicideswhichriskedlessdamagetothecrop'sfoliage.

References
Notes
1. ^TheBonsaiPrimer:JinandSharimiki(http://www.bonsaiprimer.com/jinshari/jinshari.html)
2. ^Chan,Peter(1987).BonsaiMasterclass.SterlingPublishingCompanyInc.pp.146147.ISBN080696763
3.

Bibliography
"ChemicalInvestigationofBestConditionsforMakingtheLimeSulfurWash."L.L.VanSlyke,A.W.
Bosworth,&C.C.Hedges,NewYorkAgriculturalExperimentStationBulletinNo.329,December1910,
Geneva,NewYork

Externallinks
ChronologicalHistoryoftheDevelopmentofInsecticidesandControlEquipmentfrom1854through
1954(http://entweb.clemson.edu/pesticid/history.htm)
BackgroundonHistoryofPesticideUseandRegulationintheUnitedStates,PartTwo
(http://www.pestmanagement.info/pesticide_history/Two.pdf)(PDF,54kB).
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TheValueofFungicidesinU.S.CropProduction
(http://www.croplifefoundation.org/Documents/Pesticide%20Benefits/Fungicides/Final%20Report/A
ssembled%20Full%20Report%2091205.pdf),(PDF,1.1MB)
Retrievedfrom"http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Lime_sulfur&oldid=636838464"
Categories: Pestcontrol Fungicides Insecticides Calciumcompounds Sulfurcompounds
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