Question
I have an area near my home where I wish to make a flower bed.As I began to cultivaate the spot I notice residue of lye (white powder substance) that was spilled there over 3-4 years ago. What effect will this have on my plants or is it safe to plant ther?

Answer
Lye, or Sodium hydroxide (NaOH) is a strong base that will have pH values of 8 to 14. It is also called lye or caustic soda and has many industrial and commercial applications such as paper manufacturing, textiles, soaps and detergents. Sodium hydroxide is also used to neutralize acidic solutions or raise the pH of water and soil.

If your soil is alkaline already (do a pH test) then you probably need to remove or ammend it to get the pH down.  

If your soil is acid, then you can just evenly distribute it in your garden area, rototill it and test the pH again.  It should be around 7, where most vegetative matter prefers to grow.

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