In post 11 of the thread linked below, Gene asked:
http://www.ourfigs.com/forum/blueber...-other-passion
I guess they can be treated pretty much like figs, except they need low pH, acidic soil, not alkaline.
This is what I do, and it's worked for me. Your mileage may vary. I found my method by trial and error since when I started I could find very little about the subject online.
I live in SoCal, so my mix might be different than someone who lives where it rains or freezes. Since I have so many plants in pots, mostly 15 with some in 25 gallon, I needed a lot of mix. I used what I had, including compost, and more recently, have been getting free, used mix from a local nursery. It's porous, yet holds some water. I believe people who live where it rains can use a coarser mix with lots of fir nuggets. Many people also add a significant amount of peat moss to keep the pH low, or just start with azalea mix.
The most important thing is to acidify the water that you irrigate with. Some use vinegar or citric acid, but for me the best is sulfuric acid purchased as new battery acid (33% sulfuric) from an automotive store. You only need a small amount added to water. There is not one single dilution for everyone - you will have to determine that based on your own tap water. I do not have a pH meter, I did it hit/miss and was lucky my first dilution worked well. Some store rain water for the task.
In the summer when it's hot and dry, I have to water almost every day... but I only use the acid mix about once per week. Seems to work.
I also keep my berry plants pruned to keep the tops from requiring too much water. I don't know if it's necessary to root-prune, but this year, after about 7 years, I did seriously root prune most and up potted a number of them. Root pruning was easy since the roots are fibrous and can be cut with a serrated knife. What I cut off was much like thick pieces of felt.
Blueberry plants are unforgiving if left in need of water for very long. They literally will die.
They are not the easiest plants to grow in pots, but they are well worth it.
Hope this helps.
http://www.ourfigs.com/forum/blueber...-other-passion
Hi Gina, perhaps you can describe how you tend to BB in pots. My soil is much too sweet for blueberries so I wanted to plant a few in pots but I'm not sure of how to do it. Can you treat them mostly like potted fig and root prune and repot every few years. If not what is your method and what is your soil.
Thanks,
"gene" -
Thanks,
"gene" -
This is what I do, and it's worked for me. Your mileage may vary. I found my method by trial and error since when I started I could find very little about the subject online.
I live in SoCal, so my mix might be different than someone who lives where it rains or freezes. Since I have so many plants in pots, mostly 15 with some in 25 gallon, I needed a lot of mix. I used what I had, including compost, and more recently, have been getting free, used mix from a local nursery. It's porous, yet holds some water. I believe people who live where it rains can use a coarser mix with lots of fir nuggets. Many people also add a significant amount of peat moss to keep the pH low, or just start with azalea mix.
The most important thing is to acidify the water that you irrigate with. Some use vinegar or citric acid, but for me the best is sulfuric acid purchased as new battery acid (33% sulfuric) from an automotive store. You only need a small amount added to water. There is not one single dilution for everyone - you will have to determine that based on your own tap water. I do not have a pH meter, I did it hit/miss and was lucky my first dilution worked well. Some store rain water for the task.
In the summer when it's hot and dry, I have to water almost every day... but I only use the acid mix about once per week. Seems to work.
I also keep my berry plants pruned to keep the tops from requiring too much water. I don't know if it's necessary to root-prune, but this year, after about 7 years, I did seriously root prune most and up potted a number of them. Root pruning was easy since the roots are fibrous and can be cut with a serrated knife. What I cut off was much like thick pieces of felt.
Blueberry plants are unforgiving if left in need of water for very long. They literally will die.
They are not the easiest plants to grow in pots, but they are well worth it.
Hope this helps.
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