Blueberries

[Don FoleyParticipant]

Hi,

I got a present of 3 Blueberry Bushes last spring. I did nothing with them last summer except to feed and water.
I took a look at the root balls yesterday and they look like they could do with potting on.
I’m wondering when is the best time to do this. Buds are beginning to appear now.
Also any advise on pruning would be appreciated.

Don.

[Don FoleyParticipant]

Can anyone help me out on this?

Don.

[charlesModerator]

Don I would repot them now, and prune asap. I mainly thin out crossing and duplicating branches, cut back the rest only a little.

[zufParticipant]

I know a professional blueberry grower.
He said: “You never ever cut back, you only cut out old unproductive branches at ground level, so if you cut you cut out the whole branch.”
Pot on now, as already said, while they are still in dormancy, they will soon break it.
If your bushes are young i wouldn’t prune them at all, they are not going to loose any roots anyway.
If you got them old and you see they will benefit for making them a bit younger, do it.

[Don FoleyParticipant]

Thanks All,
I re-potted today and they certainly needed doing. So far as pruning was concerned I kept it minimal as nearly every branch had buds on them, very little dead wood. Should I prune as you would Roses, i.e., keep the centre open, cutting out any branch that turns inward?
Don.

[jawilliamsParticipant]

I have just bought new blueberries. I was wondering if you followed the advice given and didn’t prune.

[Don FoleyParticipant]

Hi jawilliams,

I followed Charles’s advise. When I looked closely at them I only needed to lightly prune, just a few inward growing branches and some dead wood. I got a great crop from them this past season.
Even the Birds have left them alone and I’m still picking them now.

Don.

[jawilliamsParticipant]

I was at Clumber Park last week and I noticed that they make their own ericaceous compost using pine cones and rhubarb leaves. Did it possible then to make a blueberry feed from rhubarb leaves? Perhaps in the same way as one would make a nettle or comfrey feed.

[Gary.J.KelseyParticipant]

I have bought a Blueberry bush without doing my homework. Now realise I need to grow it in a pot with ericaceous compost, which I don’t want to do. Has anyone dug a big, wide hole, filled it with ericaceous compost managed to successfully grow blueberries?

[KarenParticipant]

Hello Gary,

You can certainly do that. We have almost 30 blueberry bushes and most of them are in raised beds filled with rhododendron soil/compost. Go for it and good luck 🙂

[Don FoleyParticipant]

Hi Gary,

You will also need to get a second Blueberry Bush of a different variety to what you have.
This is because Blueberries are only partially self fertile and pollinate far better with other Blueberries close by, which of course means a better crop.

Don.

[Don FoleyParticipant]

BTW Gary, they grow extremely well in large terracotta pots and can look very ornamental on a Patio.

Don.

[Gary.J.KelseyParticipant]

Thanks, I have planted one plant into my slightly raised beds (no sides), with one bag of ericaceous compost, I will buy another plant soon and do the same. Just noticed that this plant is not self fertile, so will need another plant. Does this definitely need to be a different variety?

[Don FoleyParticipant]

Hi Gary,,
It must be a different variety, for optimum pollination, and it will certainly make a huge difference to the size of the crop you get from the bushes.
Don.

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