Ripen early to mid-season. Polaris 4 x 4 ft Very good to good 3 to 8 lbs Medium, firm, crisp berries. Intense flavor. Cloud 5 x 4 ft Very good to good 2 to 7 lbs Medium, dark blue, firm berries. Sweet flavor, crisp texture. Superior 5 x 4 ft Very good to good 3 to 8 lbs Medium, sweet-tart berries. Ripen late. Planting Blueberries grow best in full sun. Choose a sunny location Avoid areas surrounded by trees.
Trees provide too much shade, compete with plants for water and nutrients, and interfere with air movement around plants. Poor air movement increases danger of spring frost injury to blossoms and favors disease development. Space blueberry plants about 3 feet apart. If the variety you purchase is listed as growing larger than that, then space them a little further apart.
Plant young blueberry bushes in late April or early May. Dig the holes large enough to accommodate all the roots and deep enough so you can cover the uppermost roots with 3 to 4 inches of soil. Pack the soil firmly around the roots, then mulch the planting with 2 to 4 inches of sawdust, peat moss, oak leaf or pine needle mulch.
These types of mulch are acidic and will help maintain a low soil pH. Mulch also helps maintain soil moisture, prevents weeds, and reduces soil temperature in the summer.
Replenish mulch as needed. Water thoroughly after planting to ensure moisture reaches the deepest roots. Water the plant frequently and deeply, enough to keep the soil moist but not saturated.
Staking and support Generally no support is required. Do not use wire as it may cut into the stem. Managing pests and diseases Insects and wildlife cause minimal damage to blueberries. Find help identifying common pest problems: Use the online diagnostic tools What insect is this?
Visit Ask a Master Gardener to share pictures and get advice. Insects Spotted wing drosophila is an invasive fruit fly that lays its eggs in ripe fruit, leading to soft, damaged berries.
Wildlife In the late fall and winter, rabbits and deer enjoy nibbling on the stems of blueberry bushes. Diseases Diseases are unlikely to cause significant problems on home grown blueberry plants. Cankers Examine the plants for cankers that first appear as small, discolored areas on the stems.
Cankers usually occur close to the ground but may be higher on the stem. Stems are usually girdled in one season by cankers. Girdled stems die and leaves turn brown. Cut out affected parts several inches below the cankered area.
How to keep your blueberry bushes healthy and productive. Weeding and caring for young plants. Nutrient-related challenges Blueberry plants in soil with a pH above 5.
Signs of pH problems: Chlorosis, or yellow discoloring of the leaves, is usually the first sign of a soil pH problem. Slowed growth. Poor fruit production and general plant failure. Soil amendments don't work quickly enough to fix this in one season.
Soil pH problems must be corrected to improve blueberry plant health. To amend soil pH: Keep the plants mulched with a few inches of oak leaf or pine needle mulch to help maintain soil acidity. Use a fertilizer that includes elemental sulfur, such as ammonium sulfate Soil pH is easiest to amend with sulfur a year before the blueberries are planted.
Pruning At planting, prune only to remove any broken, dead or dying parts of branches. Prune to: Remove dead and diseased wood. Shape the bush. Maintain enough vigorous main stems to prevent overbearing. They need about 3 qts of water a day in summer. They set so much fruit I have to thin some off. This is after I prune twice a yr to reduce fruit buds and increase vegetative growth. I have mine back in pots beause they were very unhappy in the ground, and they get full sun in spring while making blueberries, and then morning sun only in summer.
Their leaves will burn and get crispy if they sit in the hot sun all day. I have them both in full sun and afternoon sun. The ones in full sun outproduce the ones in partial shade, but do get some crispy leaves in the worst heat. But by then the berries are harvested, so who cares. How do I make this deck charming and up to code on a limited budget?
How to disguise tall fence. How do we keep birds away from our porch?!!! Deer resistant shrub for containers needed. This is a really great question as far as I'm concerned!
I was just going to search for the answer to this when I found this post. So I hope more people respond with their experiences and opinions. I am in a townhouse that is close to other town houses. I have East and West exposures, but the east exposure is blocked for a few hours each morning. So, I'm trying to decide where I'm going to set these blueberries.
I'm also trying to find the best situation for a currant bush, and 2 columnar apple trees. I'm trying to figure out which can tolerate my available locations with the greatest potential and least suffering. The answer is give them the most sun they can stand.
It is difficult to compare sun amounts. Full sun in Contra Costa county is not much like full sun in Sacramento. Most people grow blueberries for the fruit and more sun equals more fruit, although the plant may not always appear as happy.
Does anyone have an opinion if blueberries will fare as well if not better in pots vs in the ground? It would seem that in pots you could much more easily control their soil and give them what they need in a controlled space.
I'm about to plant some and have access to some big 20 gallon containers the big beer buckets with rope handles. They are at least 20 gallons I think. And they would hold up for a long time. I do like the idea of containers even though space isnt an issue here. If you have naturally acid soil in your area, then growing them in the ground would be easier than in pots.
Your blueberries could also develop disease from trees that hinder air circulation. The best location is a wide-open area in full sunlight. Once you choose a sunny location, test your soil for pH readings. Make sure the soil drains well because blueberry roots can become damaged from standing water.
Blueberries need a soil pH of 4. If your pH is too high, the will have slow growth and discolored leaves; eventually they will die.
Depending on how your soil test turns out, you can supplement the soil with the nutrients it needs to meet pH requirements. An effective way to adjust the soil pH is to add 4 to 6 inches of peat moss to the soil. You may also decide to choose a cultivar based on the desired size of the fruit. Larger specimens are great for eating berries from the bush , while small berries are usually preferred for cooking things like pies, crisps, and preserves.
If you've grown other fruit-bearing plants , you know you're in it for the long haul. Your plants can happily produce fruit for years with relatively little care, but you'll want to start them off right. For blueberry plants, that means opting for the largest pot possible, planting one plant per pot. Choose a container that's at least 18 inches deep and boasts ample drainage holes. Half-barrels and other deep, wide containers work well for keeping blueberry plants in for the long term.
Plant your blueberry bushes into their containers, burying them as deep as they were in their nursery pots. If necessary, top with additional soil, leaving the top inch or so of the container empty. Immediately water the pot thoroughly to settle the soil and eliminate any air gaps around the plant's roots. Once your growing season is over, you'll want to protect your blueberry plants for the winter season. Blueberries are tough plants, but if you live in a cold-winter climate you should move your containers against the side of your home or into a protected area to keep them out of the wind.
You can also mulch your plants with straw or wrap them in burlap. Insect and fungal problems can sometimes occur on blueberry plants. If you need to treat your plants, make sure to use a fungicide or pesticide that is safe for edible plants. Blueberry maggots and cherry fruit worms can also be occasional problems. While these pests are treatable with systemic pesticides, be wary of their use, as many are toxic to pollinating insects.
If yellowing of the leaves occurs, it's probably a sign that the soil pH is too high and is causing chlorosis. To rectify the issue, acidify the soil with fertilizer made for acid-loving plants.
Problem Insects in Blueberry Fruit. New York State Horticulture Society. Leaves are Turning Yellow and Drying Out.
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