Growing Blueberries - 9 Tips For Planting Blueberry Bushes

The down economy has prompted many of us to start growing Food in our backyards. I've grown tomatoes for roughly 20 years, but last growing season I decided it was time to try growing blueberries. I wanted to plant blueberries because my house loves them and I don't like the price I have to pay for them at the grocery store. Plus, blueberries are one of the most nutritious Foods on the planet - these super-fruits have been shown to shrink tumors, lower cholesterol and heighten memory.

Growing Blueberries - 9 Tips For Planting Blueberry Bushes

Growing Blueberries - 9 Tips For Planting Blueberry Bushes

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Growing Blueberries - 9 Tips For Planting Blueberry Bushes

Growing Blueberries - 9 Tips For Planting Blueberry Bushes

My blueberry plants are in their second season, the blossoms have faded and blueberries are forming. Before I planted my bushes, I did a lot of research on how to plump and plant blueberries. This article summarizes what I've learned about growing blueberries.

1. Make sure you buy at least two varieties of blueberry bushes. Most species need cross pollination in order to furnish fruit. I've met citizen who say they don't get berries on their blueberry bushes. After request them some questions, it turns out that they are growing just one variety. There are highbush varieties that can grow more than 6 feet tall, lowbush varieties that are ordinarily shorter than 2 feet, and half high varieties about 3 feet tall.

2. Be sure that you are purchasing a collection that will live in your growing zone. Blueberries can be grown virtually everywhere in the continental United States and into Canada. When I was purchasing my plants at a reputable orchad center, I noticed that the nursery was selling varieties that could not survive the cold winters of Zone 4 where I live. Pay concentration to the zones indicated on the label.

3. pick an area with at least 6 hours of sun to plant your blueberries. In the desert heat in areas such as Arizona, you will probably want to keep the blueberry plants out of the sun during the scorching heat of the day.

4. Blueberries prefer soil with an acid pH level so if you are planning on growing blueberries, you will need to prepare the soil for planting. buy some peat moss and aluminum sulphate when you buy your blueberry plants. Work the peat and aluminum sulfate into the soil. The hole you dig should be 4 or five inches deeper than the pot and at least 2 times wider than the pot.

5. Plant the bush so that the soil surrounding the plant is even with the soil in the pot. You will want to mulch nearby the bush. Pine needles create an acid pH level so mulching with pine needles or pine bark is ideal. However, other mulching material will work too.

6. Water your bush wholly and make sure to water it usually (maybe two or three times a week) when it is newly planted. If you are growing blueberries that are established, they need roughly one inch of water a week during growing season.

7. The most painful part of the process of planting blueberries is to take off all or most of any existing blossoms so that the plant can put its vigor into the root system. I clipped all the blossoms when I planted my plants the first season. This year I added one more collection to my blueberry orchad and I only clipped about 2/3 of the blossoms.

8. In my garden, rabbits have been known to wholly devour bushes and plants, so I added a small fence to safe the blueberry plants. If I see birds eating the berries, I can drape netting over the top of this fence.

9. The second season after you plant the blueberry bushes, you will want to fertilize with a fertilizer meant for plants that like acid conditions, such as Miracid.

I just checked my bushes this morning and I've got some green blueberries. It should just be a few more weeks until I can add freshly picked berries to my cereal or yogurt.

Growing Blueberries - 9 Tips For Planting Blueberry Bushes