|
Post by daylilydude on Dec 20, 2010 19:56:25 GMT -5
I'm thinking about growing blueberries but have no idea how? Would it be easier to grow them in large pots to where you can control the acidity better?
|
|
grapenut
Pro Member
Posts: 146
Joined: December 2010
|
Post by grapenut on Dec 20, 2010 20:18:46 GMT -5
Well, BB's do very well in containers, I start my young ones in 1 gl pots, the next year I put them into 3 gl pots, the third year I either put them into the ground or into 15-20 gl pots where they will stay for the rest of there fruiting lives, I mix the soil a year in advance to give the sulfur time to lower the ph, in pots I find it better to put them in a place that gets full morning sun and shade in the afternoon. If you have good draining soil, it would be better to dig a hole and put your amended soil into that..you would end up with more fruit production in the long run, but if you have clay soil that drains poorly and you have very wet springs the holes will act as bathtubs and could drowned the plant, so in that case pots would be the best bet.
|
|
|
Post by daylilydude on Dec 21, 2010 0:53:08 GMT -5
Do you have a particular variety that does great?
|
|
grapenut
Pro Member
Posts: 146
Joined: December 2010
|
Post by grapenut on Dec 21, 2010 18:33:22 GMT -5
Most do very well here, but as for flavor, Duke is the worst! nice huge berries and lots of them...just no flavor. I would need to go out and check my tags to give you a list of the best tasting ones I have so far and this summer I will have ten new varieties coming online so to speak, I will get you a list tomorrow, but remember, I'm in the PNW so your millage will vary some what.
|
|
grapenut
Pro Member
Posts: 146
Joined: December 2010
|
Post by grapenut on Dec 22, 2010 18:45:28 GMT -5
Brigitta is my all time best tasting berry, firm, crunchy and just a hint of tartness. My second best is Chandler, a large firm berry with just a hint of tartness. My third choice would be, Spartan, a med size berry that is very sweet with just a hint of spice. The last four are all good, but I will list them in order of preference. Blue Ray Blue Gold Bluecrop Jersey
|
|
grapenut
Pro Member
Posts: 146
Joined: December 2010
|
Post by grapenut on Jan 6, 2011 0:27:39 GMT -5
I forgot to add Legacy, very tasty large berries.
|
|
Barton
Junior Member
Zone 6a-ish Lake Erie influenced climate
Posts: 70
Joined: December 2010
|
Post by Barton on Jan 6, 2011 7:40:50 GMT -5
I believe that if you are in the south, you may do better with low-bush varieties of blueberry.
|
|
|
Post by coppice on Jan 7, 2011 5:58:03 GMT -5
I believe that if you are in the south, you may do better with low-bush varieties of blueberry. Um, actually no. The half-tall cultivars were breed to be reliably productive to zone 3. Upland blueberry grows up to the arctic circle. Low land blue berry (the tall ones) southern frontier should be at least zone 7, may be south of that.
|
|
Deleted
Posts: 0
Joined: January 1970
|
Post by Deleted on Jan 7, 2011 17:17:18 GMT -5
I am not much of a berry person....maybe 2-3 times a year I will have homemade strawberry shortcake...but do not care much for blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, etc...
|
|
|
grapenut
Pro Member
Posts: 146
Joined: December 2010
|
Post by grapenut on Feb 18, 2011 4:40:20 GMT -5
I am not much of a berry person....maybe 2-3 times a year I will have homemade strawberry shortcake...but do not care much for blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, etc... If you have only had BB's from a store, it would be like maters! cardboard for flavor. BB's fresh from the bush...if you have a good variety, is a taste treat, but they do lose that fresh picked flavor quite quickly though.
|
|
|
Post by daylilydude on Feb 18, 2011 4:42:59 GMT -5
lol... fresh blueberries would make rocks taste good....
|
|
|
Post by coppice on Feb 18, 2011 6:06:53 GMT -5
DLD, have you called your AG extension with this localized question? They may not reccomend retailers, but should be able to reccomend cultivars.
|
|
okiedrifter
Pro Member
Posts: 127
Joined: February 2011
|
Post by okiedrifter on Feb 18, 2011 8:55:16 GMT -5
we have a blueberry farm about 20 miles from here in SE Okla. (hes over in Ar)the blue berrys bushes are a good 6 feet tall and full...we go there every year and pick berries....he charges 6 dollars a gallon and that includes all you can eat at the time...we normally take 2 trips a year to his place to fill the freezer.....and our bellies.....he calls them rabbiteyes some years they are bigger than others but always mmmmmmmmmm
|
|
|
Post by coppice on Feb 18, 2011 12:15:39 GMT -5
DLD there are about as many viburnums as there are americans--almost. Hit up your extension person with questions like buck-shot.
Closely related blue fruited bushs are: Huckelberry, amelancher, rabbiteyes. I cannot imagine one of these blue-berried bushs don't grow well where you live.
|
|
grapenut
Pro Member
Posts: 146
Joined: December 2010
|
Post by grapenut on Feb 19, 2011 0:51:51 GMT -5
lol... fresh blueberries would make rocks taste good.... Only if you grow a variety that has no flavor...Like Duke! in fact I'm gonna rip that plant out of my bed to make room for something with flavor.
|
|
grapenut
Pro Member
Posts: 146
Joined: December 2010
|
Post by grapenut on Feb 19, 2011 0:54:37 GMT -5
we have a blueberry farm about 20 miles from here in SE Okla. (hes over in Ar)the blue berrys bushes are a good 6 feet tall and full...we go there every year and pick berries....he charges 6 dollars a gallon and that includes all you can eat at the time...we normally take 2 trips a year to his place to fill the freezer.....and our bellies.....he calls them rabbiteyes some years they are bigger than others but always mmmmmmmmmm Six bucks a gallon? WOW!!! now that's a deal there!
|
|
|
Post by coppice on Feb 19, 2011 7:04:02 GMT -5
we have a blueberry farm about 20 miles from here the blue berrys bushes are a good 6 feet tall and full... Here is an eloquent descriptor of a low-land blueberry. What DLD hasn't asked of his extension is; which (if any) cultivars is-are good for his zone. Living where I did for many years (NH), anything south of zone 5 was deep in the tropics...
|
|
Deleted
Posts: 0
Joined: January 1970
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 7, 2011 13:51:18 GMT -5
daylilydude try Simmons Plant Farm for southern adapted blueberries. He sells a lot of the ones released by the University of Arkansas that have low chill hours. I personally grow Blueray and Bluecrop but I think they need more cold than what you get.
|
|
Deleted
Posts: 0
Joined: January 1970
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 26, 2011 8:14:01 GMT -5
Did you ever buy blueberry plants? I ordered mine 6 years ago from stark brothers. I bought the southern package which contained 3 types of blueberries. When you order through the internet you get very small plants... My sister has her's in containers, mine are in the ground. I get a lot more blueberries than she does.
|
|
Deleted
Posts: 0
Joined: January 1970
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 26, 2011 17:33:35 GMT -5
dld, Miss. State has down extensive research ob bb's and have tons of material you can get for free! I just started my 2nd orchard 3 yrs ago using their guidelines and,once again, its off to a fantasic start. Dont forget the soil test($6 from your county agent) and dont scimp on the peat moss. This time around, I opted Not to cut the bushes back to the recommended 8-10 inches and they are all doin' fine. good luck! ( I think its "msucares" on the www)
|
|
Deleted
Posts: 0
Joined: January 1970
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 26, 2011 17:36:22 GMT -5
Oh,meant to also say, I have Climax, Brightwell, Tifblue,and Premier. the ripen period for these keeps me in bb's for almost 2 months.
|
|
Deleted
Posts: 0
Joined: January 1970
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 28, 2011 19:10:46 GMT -5
I'm trying sunshine blue for pots, climax, Georgia gem, legacy, misty, revielle, sharp blue.
|
|
GunnarSK
Junior Member
Posts: 94
Joined: March 2011
|
Post by GunnarSK on May 6, 2011 14:42:15 GMT -5
I personally grow Blueray and Bluecrop but I think they need more cold than what you get. I have only tried blueberries which grow wild (in Denmark, Sweden, Finland and Poland), and they definitely get the cold they need. Some people (my own mother included) grow American blueberries (from US. or Canada) because they're bigger. Apart from that I have a tomato called Blueberry from Bluelytes, which I assume is a kind of OSU Blue.
|
|
okiedrifter
Pro Member
Posts: 127
Joined: February 2011
|
Post by okiedrifter on May 22, 2011 19:20:26 GMT -5
Blueberries in Alaska were awesome as were any berry......here they have a blueberry farm in a county over from us and he calls them a rabbit eye they are over my head and I am 5 10 he sells them for 6 dollars a gallon we pick ......we go twice a season and get more than enough for the year.....as well as all the kids and us can eat....I wish I could grow them like his
|
|
|
Post by coppice on May 23, 2011 1:07:20 GMT -5
Gunnars wild blueberry are upland family blue berries.
DLD is gonna grow other viburnums like huckelberry in the deep south for that kind of low growing smaller and more (lip smacking sound) wild berry taste.
|
|
|
Post by coppice on Feb 4, 2012 15:27:40 GMT -5
DLD looks to have lowland blueberry at his new residence. I dunno if there is anything he can use from these old threads, but I'm bumping them to the top for his perusal.
|
|
peapicker
Junior Member
Posts: 73
Joined: April 2011
|
Post by peapicker on Feb 19, 2012 17:15:54 GMT -5
Those recomended for the Gulf Coast and MS.are Premier,Climax,Alapaho,Brightwell,Tiffblue,Powder Blue, How far do you live from Collins MS. They have plants for $1.50 each Tel.601 722 4956
|
|