We are coming into the season for
buying young blueberry plants in the market or by mail, though the prime
planting season in our area is late fall.
Still, you can plant them into the ground in the spring and expect them
to grow well if you provide the right conditions.
You can also plant a #1potted plant
or mail-order bare root into a larger pot and let them grow twice as large over
the summer before planting in the fall.
BiMart has #1 potted blueberries in the spring, some of which are
Southern Rabbiteye, which are semi-evergreen, turn colors in the winter, and
take our hot summers better than Northern varieties, but they don’t tell you
which are which. OneGreenWorld.com is a
nursery near Molalla that sells both Southern and Northern varieties, where you
can find out which ones are Southern varieties online. Buying local is always better if they are
available, as you’ll get larger plants at a lower price.
They
don’t like to be planted into plain soil, unless it is exceedingly light and
rich, like potting soil. Rather than
planting them in the ground, it is better to set the plant on top of the ground
and surround it with enough compost to surround and cover the roots. Young blueberries grow a sponge of roots only
4-6 inches deep in their pots, putting down a deep taproot only after 4-5
years. Four to six inches is a great
depth for spreading compost to make rich, light soil after it is worked in by
worms. Unlike other shrubs and perennials,
blueberries roots will sink into the soil as the compost is worked in by worms;
other potted plants will sit on top of the soil as the compost is worked in,
and be left high and dry.
Cover
that compost with coarse mulch like ¾” nugget bark, walk-on fir, or pine
needles, to keep it from drying out and keep the roots cool and moist. 2 inches of leaves in the fall are probably
the best mulch to maintain organic matter in the soil, but I like to scatter
our copious coffee and tea grounds into the bark after the leaves are
eaten. It is vital to not let the soil
be exposed to sun. Bark protects it when
the leaves have been pulled into the soil.
Southern Oregon has hot, dry summers,
not the best conditions for growing blueberries, which like their heads in the
sun and their roots cool and moist, but don’t like a lot of heat or dryness. Indeed, most garden plants prefer a little
less heat and a lot more humidity than we have here.
The
key to getting fast growth and big berries is keeping a mister running nearby
through the heat of the summer, particularly from blooming to after harvest. 24/7 is best, as it simulates coastal
fog. It does not cause fungal
infections, and helps plants grow over a wide area of the garden.
Last year, an incident showed how vital
this is. A customer turned off one
mister for a week near an isolated plant that had been producing big, tasty
berries. The remaining berries all
stopped growing and immediately ripened, producing little berries that were not
juicy and flavorful.
February 2015 issue, online at
GardenGrantsPass.blogspot.com and at the
Mail Center, 305 NE 6th
Gardening
is easy if you do it naturally. Litter
is tagging, marking the territory of the disorderly.
Rycke Brown, Natural Gardener 541-955-9040 rycke@gardener.com