Heavy Rains and Blueberry Gardens
It doesn't get any better than having mother nature getting your back in the garden, providing a lot of rain right when you need it. Heavy downpours that soak deeply are better than any pop-up sprinkler or drip system, unless they do damage. This is as organic as it gets when it comes to watering.
When we have heavy downpours, it's important to check drains to make sure they aren't backing up. When you see this happening clean them out. If they are really backed up where cleaning them out doesn't make them drain, call a professional to fix that so you’re drainage is draining properly.
Blueberries are one of the easiest fruiting plants to grow, as long as you have the basic requirements of this delicious fruit bearing shrub in place when you start your project. Preparation up front will help to ensure a great heirloom and investment in your garden.
This is how I start and steward blueberry gardens to produce delicious fruit.
Blueberries need an acidic soil base with good drainage - remember that the ground is the foundation of your garden. I use the Gardener & Bloome Acid Planting Mix when I'm planting blueberries. I also use this when amending the soil of blueberries that are already established.
After you've gotten your plants from the nursery - right before you put them in the ground - make sure to open out the roots and remove any root-boundness that may be there. If you buy stock from a good nursery this should be rare, and if it is really bad to where you can't easily untangle the roots, you should be able to get a refund or exchange with no problems.
When you go to put them in the ground make sure to saturate the roots with water before you do. You can do this by soaking them in a bucket, or spraying them with your garden hose thoroughly right before planting.
When it comes to trees and shrubs - blueberries are a shrub - it is best to plant high and mound up. This helps establish the roots properly, and encourages good drainage. This also supports the breathing zone of the feeder roots, that if planted too low will cause disease and smother your plants in the long run.
Water them in thoroughly. Blueberries require a lot of water, and right when you plant a shrub it is important to keep those roots moist until the plant has clearly shown you it is rooting and happy. You can tell this by gently shaking the plant. The root base should not come out of the soil easily.
When blueberries are fruiting in the summer, they require even more water to support ripe, full, and delicious berries. As long as you have good drainage, you generally can't over water blueberries.
Fruits are made up of mostly water, that's why they are juicy, and is also why they require more water during fruiting.
You can mulch your blueberries with acid based plant materials like pine needles. This is good as a cover during the dormant season and colder weather to protect the roots, because blueberries have a more shallow surface based root system. This will also feed the soil at the same time.
Lastly… fertilizing your blueberries can be helpful. Remember that fertilizers are icing on the cake/super-fuel, and not the meat of your garden beds. And don’t add fertilizer directly to a planting hole or roots of your plant when planting because this can shock it.
You can add fertilizer into the soil bed before planting as long as you water it in, and give it time to disperse and activate the mycorrhizae (should be in your organic fertilizer) before you put your plants in the ground. This is optional, and I've gotten excellent results with fertilizing this way when making a blueberry garden bed as shown below. I've also gotten great results making the bed without the fertilizer and adding fertilizer to the established plants a year later. If you are planting in the summer don't fertilize at all, just amend the soil and plant with acid planting mix.
My favorite fertilizer for blueberries is Dr. Earth's Acid Lovers.
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