As I mentioned in an earlier post, Hubs and I have a 3 step plan for growing blueberries that we will implement this year for the 2013 season. 2013 will be our 5th season and 5th attempt at growing blueberries. The irony is that the Highbush Blueberry is native to our area and should be a piece of cake, right? Not so fast…
- Select sunny spot for blueberry patch. Seems obvious, I know, but we made a common mistake in year 1 of our new home and garden. We didn’t observe the amount of light in different areas of the garden, and how it changes during the season. We were also optimistic when the plant tags read ‘partial sun to full sun.’ So, after 2 different garden locations, we are planning for a spot with full sun and maximum sun exposure.
- Use optimal soil and measure pH. Our first year we planted the blueberries in the as-is reddish clay soil. We didn’t enrich it with compost or peat moss, or anything, and we didn’t measure the pH of the soil, which we deemed too fussy as blueberries are natives. Well, we should have and will do this next year.
- Protect your investment. We will use netting and make it look pretty like our neighbors (see picture below). This year’s blueberry bushes were planted in a somewhat sunny spot in decent soil, but left unprotected.
Additional tips and suggestions welcome…
Protect your investment: Install blueberry netting to protect them from predators
Soil is so important for finicky blueberries. The picture highlights a great way to work on the pH – note that the mulch used in your picture are aged pine needles – and excellent natural mulch to raise the acidity of soil. Pine needles should be aged at least one winter outdoors to aid in their decomposition.
Good addition – I forgot to mention the pine needle mulch. Thanks!
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