It’s not easy and takes patience and love!

Quick facts about growing blueberries

• Blueberries need full sun.
• Blueberries require acidic soil.
• Plant two or more varieties for successful pollination.
• Plants won’t have much fruit the first 2 to 3 years.
• Harvest is bigger after 5 years.
• Blueberry plants grow slowly and reach full size in 8 to 10 years.
• Each winter, prune out old, weak and dead wood.

It will be 2 or 3 years before you start getting large harvests, but it is definitely worth the wait. The bushes are very attractive and will be a beautiful addition to your yard while you wait for fruit.

Amending soils for correcting pH levels

• To lower the pH value of the soil, use a soil acidifying fertilizer.
• The University of Minnesota advises not to use aluminum sulfate because it is too hard on the roots of blueberries.
• For continuous maintenance of the acidity level, pine needles and peat moss can be used as mulches to help keep the pH level where it needs to be.

Soil pH is easiest to amend with sulfur a year before the blueberries are planted. Do not plant blueberries until the soil is at the correct pH or the plants may fail in the first year.

Blueberry plants require acidic soil (pH 4.0 to 5.0) that is well-drained, loose and high in organic matter. Most garden soils in Minnesota have higher pH and must be amended.

If pH is too high, the plant will be slow growing, the leaves will discolor, and the plants will die.  Keep the plants mulched with a few inches of oak leaf or pine needle mulch to help maintain soil acidity.

Planting

Blueberries grow best in full sun. Plants will tolerate partial shade, but too much shade causes plants to produce fewer blossoms and less fruit.

• Avoid areas surrounded by trees.
  • Trees provide too much shade, compete with plants for water and nutrients, and interfere with air movement around plants.
  • Poor air movement increases danger of spring frost injury to blossoms and favors disease development.
• Space blueberry plants about 3 feet apart. If the variety you purchase is listed as growing larger than that, then space them a little further apart.
• Plant young blueberry bushes in late April or early May.
• Dig the holes large enough to accommodate all the roots and deep enough so you can cover the uppermost roots with 3 to 4 inches of soil.
• Pack the soil firmly around the roots, then mulch the planting with 2 to 4 inches of sawdust, peat moss, oak leaf or pine needle mulch.
• Water thoroughly after planting to ensure moisture reaches the deepest roots.
• Water the plant frequently and deeply, enough to keep the soil moist but not saturated.

Insects and wildlife cause minimal damage to blueberries. Because of the acidic soil requirements of blueberries, you are much more likely to have nutritional issues than pest issues. This highlights how important correct diagnosis is in addressing issues.

Hazards to plants

Spotted wing drosophila is an invasive fruit fly that lays its eggs in ripe fruit, leading to soft, damaged berries.

The bright green and bronze colored Japanese Beetle feeds on the leaves of blueberry plants, which can make them susceptible to winter injury.

In the late fall and winter, rabbits and deer enjoy nibbling on the stems of blueberry bushes. This may drastically stunt the plant. Protect plants by surrounding them with chicken wire or similar fencing in the fall and winter.

Careful pruning will help prevent disease infection. Prune out and dispose of any part of the plant that is dead or dying.

Pollination

More than one variety of blueberry plant is needed for pollination. For best fruit set, plant two or more varieties.

‘North Sky’

Maximizing fruit production

De-flower your plants for the first two years. I know, it sounds painful, BUT you will be very glad you did as this will allow the slow growing shrub to develop fully for better fruit production.