I totally get it. You’d much prefer to have blueberries growing beautifully in your back yard. Same!
In fact, we’ve kind of mastered the idea and now take care of about 3 acres of blueberries.
There are several crucial aspects to growing and raising healthy, thriving blueberry plants and I’m going to share with you a few reasons why your might not be producing.
Hopefully this info helps you get them on track, or prevent any mistakes if you’ve yet to get your plants started!
The most common mistake I see happen involves the acidity of the soil. Blueberries LOVE acid. It’s the key component to production. Without acid, they simply won’t produce much.
So the number one mistake people make is not getting a soil sample first. If you’re going to grow blueberries, you really need to know what your soil is like so you can adjust accordingly.
I can almost guarantee your soil is not acidic enough.
Hint: The higher the pH, the less acidic it is.
Most of our soil here in the midwest sits at around 6.5 or 7pH. Blueberries need more like a 4 or 4.5pH. That’s a big difference! Knowing what your soil is like is very important so you take the correct steps. If you have a smaller amount of bushes, most likey you do if you’re a home grower and not growing commercially, then you can opt to buy something like azaela fertilizer because they both like the same pH.
You can check out some videos on youtube to confirm, but I’ve heard making a mixture with vinegar is also suitable too. I just don’t know the exact ratio. Azaela fertilizer would work, just make sure you do some soil samples a couple times per year the first few years so you know if it’s doing anything - and how long it lasts.
If you’re growing larger quantities like an acre or more, you can use something called elemental sulfur.
Elemental sulfer is pelleted and slowing sleeps into the soil after being sprinkled on, and works great! It is harder to get and more expensive, so you just have to figure out whats best for your size yard.
Blueberries also LOVE water. Irrigating is necessary as they do not like to dry out. If you’re finding that your bushes are producing small berries, it’s likely due to lack of enough water.
Our berries thrived on this late spring/early summer rain we’ve had this year and have produced the largest, juiciest berries we’ve had in years!
Even after they are done producing for the season, we are still sure to irrigate until the fall rain comes.
So, while growing blueberries can be fairly easy and produces the most delicious garden snack, it just takes a few key steps to get there. Acidify your soil and irrigate well. Those are the first two main steps!
If you found this post helpful but still need more info, check out my Blueberries & Beyond ebook. I go into greater detail in regards to growing your own blueberries. We chat about the how-to, varieties best for our area, where to buy plants, how to prune, how to plant correctly, and more.
Check it out HERE.
Thanks for reading and happy growing!
