Caring for your blueberries

[dragoneggs]

I used peat moss around the base of my blueberry bushes, it has a low PH (acidic).

I do that too... holds the moisture in which is also good. :thumbsup:

 

[dieselscout80]

Hi Folks,

I have a bunch of blueberry bushes that I have had varying luck with over the years. Year before last the deer got to
the buds and I only got a handful of berries. Last year I was able to keep the deer away. I pruned the bushes just before the snow melted,
and gave them some of this before the ground thawed.
View attachment 642971
It was the biggest crop I have ever had. The branches were bent to the ground, and I harvested buckets of berries.

I had heard that blueberries don't need much fertilizer? Just wondering what you all do to make your plants better.

Thanks
Dave

Do you put just this acid increases or do you also add a regular fertilizer like a 10/10/10?

 

[RalphVa]

For most of mine, I actually planted them into peat moss. Then put pine straw on about every fall. Plan to continue the 2 or 3 handfuls of blood meal (about 12-0-0), sulfur, sand (1/3, 1/3, 1/3) on every bush again this year. Gotta prune out some crossing and damaged stuff. **** hooved rat rubbed his antlers on one bush and almost destroyed it.

Ralph

 

[Stimw]

I had 15 bushes at my last property and in a good year I would get 15 gallons of berries!
They were big as a dime and when you made pancakes they stuck out of each side.
There was an old guy up the road that told me to fertilize with Azalea fertilizer and prune after the harvest and that will allow growth for next years crop.
The people that bought my old property MOWED THEM DOWN! Also cut down 3 red navel orange trees.
I would have dig all of them up and taken with me if I had known how stupid they were.

 

[dragoneggs]

I had 15 bushes at my last property and in a good year I would get 15 gallons of berries!
They were big as a dime and when you made pancakes they stuck out of each side.
There was an old guy up the road that told me to fertilize with Azalea fertilizer and prune after the harvest and that will allow growth for next years crop.
The people that bought my old property MOWED THEM DOWN! Also cut down 3 red navel orange trees.
I would have dig all of them up and taken with me if I had known how stupid they were.

That is criminal!

 

[skipperbrown]

Blueberries like a pH of 4 to 5 which is quite acidic.

 

[DarkBlack]

Blueberries like a pH of 4 to 5 which is quite acidic.

That is usually recommended but I get away with 6-6.5. and they do just fine.

 

[dragoneggs]

I picked up a rain barrel free from our local county conservation district. This thing is brand new with a hook up to a downspout and a brass faucet at the bottom. Currently my downspout drains into my blueberry patch. I am going to hook up a timer and soaker hose for gravity flow watering the plants during the summer!

 

[Alan W.]

Around here the soil is naturally acid which works well for my blueberries.
I try to mulch them in about a foot deep with oak leaves every year.
Usually put some triple 19 on them just before bloom and again when the berries are forming.