A little confused - Blueberry question

[skeeter9]

I finally took the plunge and bought 2 highbush blueberry plants. I put them in large pots, using about 3/4 Miracle Grow potting soil and 1/4 peat moss. Then I used Miracid to feed them. My question is, how often do I use the Miracid? Also, is that the only fertilizer I use for them or do I also use something else? I was planning on using manure tea on them like I do the rest of my plants, but I'm not sure if that's a good idea. Any thoughts?

 

[AmyRey]

Curious... why pots? Don't most blueberries get REALLY big?

 

[ninnymary]

Amyrey...I have "sunshine blue" in a hugh pot. The nursery said they did well in pots and showed me a picture of one of them in a pot that was in a garden in my bay area.

Mine seems to be doing very well. Looks healthy with lots of berries.

Mary

 

[oberhaslikid]

The manure tea wont hurt it. I have acid soil so I dont add Muracid to mine. I mulch with wood chips,Sawdust. They add acid to the soil also.
If this is their first year I would go light on the fertilizer.
I worked on a Blueberry farm years ago and he had some very large bushes in half barrel pots to demonstrate that they could also be grown in pots.

 

[skeeter9]

Thanks for the info, guys. Sounds like I should just water them regularly until later in the summer, then hit them with some Miracid again?

I only plan on having them in pots for a couple of years, then they will go in a special "acid-loving" raised bed. It's hard to keep things in pots for too long here because of the heat.

 

[Northernrose]

I was told to feed twice in the spring with a weak fertilizer. Cottonseed meal is supposed to work really well if you want to use a more natural fertilizer.

I have 16 blue berries in 1/2 wine barrels. This is their second year and they are doing great. Drainage and soil Ph is a problem for me as well as oakroot fungus. So growing blueberries in pots works for me the best.

I copied this from a guide to growing blueberries in containers:
Potting mix:
1/3 Pathway bark (1/4 inch)
1/3 Peat Moss (coarse, if you can find it)
1/3 Leaf Mold or Forest Humus based potting soil.
Mix together and add 2 tablespoons of Soil Sulfur.

This will get your container Blueberry off to a great start. Then, in then spring, use a fertilizer high in nitrogen (sulfate or urea) and minor nutrients. The Nitrogen must not be from Nitrate!
This can be deadly to blueberries (don't find out the hard way!).

http://www.davewilson.com/homegrown/promotion/blueberries.html

I just picked up 4 new blueberries to add to my collection.
Chandler
Darrow
Blueray
Pink lemonade- New with pink berries.

Here is a picture showing some of my blueberries in 1/2 wine barrels (on the right of the picture). They are loaded with berries this spring.

 

[skeeter9]

Great info, Northernrose. Thank you. I definitely want to use something other than Miracid - something more natural.

Your blueberries look great! Are you going to harvest this year? Mine are too young so I snipped the spent flowers off so the plants won't put energy into making berries. It was soooo hard to do, but should be worth it in the long run.

 

[Northernrose]

Thanks I always thought blueberries were hard to grow in N. California until my mom's neighbor put in nearly 60 acres of blueberries. He's still planting more and another two neighbors put in 20+ acres each too. He's growing the Duke variety commercially.

Mine were bought as large 1 gallon plants and have grown very well. I actually have up to 3 varieties in each barrel. I want to see which ones do the best. I've prunned away weak growth and a few older canes on the biggest. Every bush except my new, tiny Pink Lemonade bush has blueberries on them. So, yum yum starting in a few weeks

I don't know the name of this bush because I lost it's tag. I've had it for about 5 years and almost lost it a few times due to neglect. I've had two kids since I bought it. It's growing nicely now and loves it's 1/2 wine barrel. It's got huge berries on it!

 

[skeeter9]

Oh my gosh, those blueberries look beautiful! You must be so excited.

I never dreamed that we could grow blueberries in our area either, but apparently it's possible!

I was considering a Duke, but I ended up with a Blueray and a Legacy. Hopefully I can add some more next year.

 

[thistlebloom]

Northernrose that's good info. My blueberries did great the first 3 years, then started to decline while I tinkered around with this and that, nothing that seemed to make a substantial difference.
If they continue to do poorly this year (they're in a new location) they will most certainly be going into containers.
Those are HUGE berries!