Planting Your Own blueberries

Fresh blueberries are some of the most refreshing, healthiest treats. Blueberries are great in pies, muffins, on top of pancakes, and cereal.

What blueberries like
Blueberry plants love sunny areas and well-drained soils with a high organic matter content. Avoid wet, poorly drained soils; the berry wont be so happy as their roots will be susceptible to root rot. Planting in raised beds or mounds while also using some type of organic matter like hay or straw can really make a blueberry plant happy. The pH content of your soil is another important aspect to the growth and happiness of your berries. Blueberries flourish in a acidic soil with a pH around 4 - 5.5. You may have to alter your pH by adding some peat moss to your soil or another type of acid altering content. To do this simply mix in a bit of peat moss around and in the hole in which to plan to plant the berry plant. Generally, Blueberry plants can reach about 6 to 8 feet.



Time to plant
Spring is definitely the best time to plant blueberries. The roots of dormant, bare-root plants should be soaked in a mixture of water and Fish Emulsion - gallon for about an hour before planting. It is a good idea to use some type of fertilizer such as Fish Emulsion - gallon to soak the roots in before planting. You can also use this fertilizer (fish emulsion) to water your blueberry plants which will help with plant growth and encourage bearing of fruit.

Dig a hole approximately 18 to 24 inches deep and 2 feet wide. Make sure not to bury the plant any deeper than it was previously planted at the nursery. Then fill in the hole with a fifty:fifty mixture of soil and moist peat moss (if you need to alter the acidity of your soil). After the blueberry plant is fully planted, prune the plant by 1/2. Remove the small branches and trim back the main branches. Also, thoroughly water each blueberry plant (you can use the Fish Emulsion - gallon that you first used to soak your plant).

Spacing of your plant depends on the variety of blueberry, but generally a gap between plants of 3-6 feet will insure pollination. Blueberry plants live very shallow and their roots just go crazy (fibrous root system).

Control weeds and keep a happy plant
Blueberry plants can quickly become stressed during hot, dry weather. You should apply some type of top cover (3 to 5 inches around each plant) like straw, saw dust, or wood chips to help retain moisture and control weeds. During dry weather, water plants weekly.

The first couple years
You shouldn't allow your blueberry plants to bear fruit for the first 2 years after planting. When you see blossoms appearing, simply pinch them off for the first 2 years. This helps with the growth of the plant and helps to produce bigger and more plentiful berries.
Your plants should come into full production by the fifth or sixth year. Gardeners can expect to harvest 4 to 10 pounds of fruit per plant from a mature plant; probably more if you talk to them! Half-high blueberries generally produce 1 to 3 pounds per plant.
Blueberries are also attractive ornamental shrubs. Blueberry plants produce a white-ish / pink-ish flowers in the spring. They also produce a great fall leaf color. The fall leafage consists of yellows, oranges, and reds.


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