Planting and caring for garden blueberries require a lot of effort, but if you find the right approach to it, you can get an impressive harvest every year. Having an excellent taste and a huge number of useful features, the plant is one of the most desired in personal plots. And most importantly, not only fruits, but also leaves and twigs of blueberries are endowed with healing properties.

Garden blueberries: the nuances of growing

Blueberries belong to the genus Vaccinium. This is a perennial plant, therefore, before planting at its summer cottage, it is worth considering the fact that it can safely grow there for several decades. An aggressive garden environment is not the best option for bush growth, however, experienced gardeners have learned to create conditions for plants that are as close as possible to natural conditions.

Blueberries do not like open spaces, but they are also not recommended to plant it near large trees. The soil must be acidic, in addition, it is necessary to maintain water balance. Consider all the features of growing and care in more detail, which will allow you to form a general impression of this plant.

Outdoor landing

The process of planting blueberries in open soil is practically no different from planting other plants. However, there are some simple rules that every owner of a personal plot is simply obliged to know about.

Soil and place requirements

Despite the fact that blueberries grow in the tundra, at home it is better to choose a bright and open place for it. Nearby trees and shrubs will reduce yield and reduce fruit size.

  • It is desirable that the level of groundwater occurrence in the area where the plant will live does not exceed 0.5-1 meters. This will help to maintain a sufficient amount of moisture in the soil, which is so necessary for blueberries.
  • When choosing a landing site, you must also pay attention to the fact that it was protected from strong winds. A good barrier will be fences or artificial hedges.
  • In addition, there should be a certain level of acidity, therefore, before planting, measure the pH value (its norm is 3.5-5.5).

For the development of the plant, a neutral environment will need to be acidified. For this, colloidal sulfur, citric or phosphoric acid are perfect. It is better to fill up the substrate six months before the berries are planted.

Despite the fact that blueberries can take root on depleted soil without problems and do not need any fertilizers, experienced gardeners still try to prepare a special substrate for it, which differs in its composition from ordinary garden soil.

  • At the bottom of the pit, in which the seedlings will be planted, a layer of drainage is laid. Usually, chips or small branches of pine are used as it.
  • Then the substrate itself is prepared from horse and sphagnum peat, sawdust, forest land, sand and coniferous humus.
  • Peat should make up half of the whole composition, the remaining components are taken in equal proportions.

How and when to plant blueberries in autumn, spring?

You can plant blueberry seedlings in spring or autumn. If this procedure is carried out in the spring, then it is important to do this before the kidneys swell.

A few rules for the proper planting of seedlings:

  1. Prepare the wells initially. On average, their size should be 60x60, depth - up to 0.5 meters.
  2. If low-growing varieties are planted, the gap between the pits can be 0.5 meters, for medium-sized ones it increases to 1 meter, for tall, it is necessary to maintain a distance of more than a meter.
  3. Try to keep the distance between the rows about three meters.
  4. Loosen the walls and bottom of the hole - this will saturate the root system with the necessary amount of oxygen. Then fill part of the pit with a special substrate. In no case do not introduce any organic matter, as it is able to lower the level of acidity.
  5. Place the seedling in the hole and carefully straighten all the roots. Start to cover them with earth, but remember that the root neck should be sprinkled only a few centimeters.
  6. Pour the planted seedlings with water and pour a layer of coniferous sawdust, straw or peat on top.

To plant blueberries from containers, containers must be placed in water for 15 minutes.

After that, it will be an order of magnitude easier to get a sprout. Mash the ground and straighten the roots properly.

Knowing the basic rules of planting in spring, the question of how to plant garden blueberries in autumn should disappear by itself. The sequence of actions does not differ from those described above and does not depend on the time of year. The only thing you need to know is that after the autumn planting, the young seedling needs to remove all weak cuttings, and shorten the remaining ones by half. If the seedlings are more than 2 years old, then they do not need any pruning.

Garden Blueberries: Care

So that the success of growing blueberries does not take long, it is important to adhere to the basic rules in caring for the plant. This applies to watering, pruning, preparing for winter and the question of how to feed blueberries.

Watering schedule

Blueberries are just the plant that needs a sufficient amount of moisture.

It does not have enough natural rainfall, which means that you should take care of regular watering.

This is especially important in the spring. A high and high-quality result is guaranteed by the drip irrigation system. But not everyone has the opportunity to organize watering in this way.

Therefore, pay attention to the following nuances:

  1. The first signal to water should be a dry top layer of the earth (about 4-5 centimeters).
  2. Young sprouts and seedlings need abundant watering every 2-4 days.In drier times, the number of irrigation increases, at moderate temperatures they can be reduced.
  3. If the soil acidity is insufficient, then every month 100 grams of vinegar or soil acidifier is added to the water (per 10 liters).

Feeding and processing

It is necessary to start feeding blueberries in the autumn, during the process of mulching the soil. By the way, this procedure is necessary, since mulch helps preserve moisture in the ground, and during decomposition it maintains a sufficient level of acidity.

Almost all garden stores sell ready-made fertilizer products, which also contain soil acidifiers. Among them, Florovit and Target have proven themselves well.

If the finished preparations do not suit you, then fertilizers can be prepared independently. First of all, pay attention to nitrogen products that have a positive effect on growth. But it is necessary to introduce them no later than July, so that in winter the young shoots will not freeze.

In addition, you can prepare another mineral mixture:

  • ammonium sulfate - 90 g;
  • superphosphate - 110 g;
  • potassium sulfate - 40 g.

The dose of fertilizer applied depends on the age characteristics of the plant. 1 year old seedlings are enough 1 tablespoon without a slide (10 grams), every year the norm increases by 1 tbsp. a spoon.

Pruning

Trimming blueberries is necessary in early spring or late fall.

There are 3 types of trimming known:

  1. Formative. It is carried out for 3-4 years after planting seedlings. It is necessary in order to form a comfortable crown. In the process, low, weakened and thick shoots are removed.
  2. Regulatory. It is recommended to do it annually after 4 years of life. With its help, you can evenly distribute inflorescences and fruit buds. The process also removes all weakened, dense and low-growing sprouts. In addition, it is allowed to remove several large branches, as well as those branches that grow in bunches at the edges of the shoots.
  3. Anti-aging. It is carried out for 8-10 years and gives the bush vital energy. It is necessary to rid the plant of all diseased and stunted branches, as well as pruning several large summer shoots.

Preparing for the winter

Blueberries are cold-resistant plants and can grow in latitudes where frosts reach -23 ... -25 degrees.

If the shoots are slightly frozen, then with the advent of heat the bush will quickly recover.

In our latitudes, it is recommended to mulch the bush with the help of needles. If very severe frosts are expected, then in the fall all the inclined branches are fixed with brackets, and the bush itself is covered with spruce branches. During flowering, blueberries are able to withstand frost to -7 degrees.

Blueberry propagation

There are several options for propagation of garden blueberries:

  • Cuttings. This is one of the most common options. This method became possible due to regeneration, as a result of which new roots are formed. When choosing a shank, it is important to pay attention to his age. In lignified shoots, metabolic and water-holding functions deteriorate, which is very necessary for the formation of the root base. As a result, green young shoots have a higher survival rate.
  • Bends. This method is also often used, but its drawback is that it can take 2-3 years to root. A suitable time for this method is a period of active growth, that is, from mid-spring to early fall.
  • The seeds. This is the most laborious work, which takes more than one year. That is why simple gardeners, this method is practically not used. It is mainly used by breeders to breed new varieties.

Pest and Disease Control

  • Most often, birds are detrimental to blueberries, which glue the fruits and reduce their productivity. To prevent this, it is recommended to cover the bushes with special nets.
  • Sometimes in springtime, blueberries can be attacked by May beetles and raspberries.They gnaw the leaf base and eat out the inflorescences. Beetle larvae can damage roots.
  • Also, the plant suffers from scale insects, silkworms, aphids and leafworms. Large individuals are collected manually, and to remove the rest, it is necessary to spray the bushes with Karbofos or Aktellik.

As for diseases, most often the plant is affected by various fungi. They are provoked by the accumulation of moisture in the rhizome region with insufficient water permeability of the soil. For prevention, bushes are recommended to be treated with a Bordeaux mixture in spring. Topaz may be used for treatment.

It happens that the bushes infect viruses or mycoplasma diseases. Unfortunately, they are not treatable and as a result, it is necessary to cut off the damaged parts and burn them.

If you noted that the leaves of the plant began to turn yellow, then this indicates an insufficient level of nitrogen. The result of such a shortage will be small fruits and a slowdown in shoot growth.

Varieties of garden blueberries

Today, there are a huge number of varieties of garden blueberries, and it is simply impossible to consider all of them. We offer you to get acquainted with the most popular options that have proven themselves from the best side among gardeners.

  • Bluegold is one of the early varieties that can withstand cold up to -35 degrees. Minimum yield 4 kg.
  • Blukport - mid-season variety, berries have a flattened shape.
  • Blyurey - different juicy and sugary-sweet berries, which can be collected in mid-summer. Able to withstand frosts down to -34 degrees.
  • Bonus - a variety with very large fruits. Often the size of berries happens with a coin. They can be consumed both fresh and frozen.
  • Gerber is one of the tallest bushes, often reaching a height of 2 meters. Thanks to such features, up to 9 kg of fruits can be obtained from it.
  • Jersey is a fairly common variety tested by no generation. Berries are well stored and used for homemade harvesting.
  • Duke - the variety is not afraid of spring frosts, and its fruits can be harvested already in mid-July.
  • Northland Cases have been noted when the plant withstood frosts down to -40 degrees. Thanks to this ability, it is great for cold regions. The maximum yield of the bush is 8 kg.

It is impossible to attribute blueberries to the number of the most unpretentious plants. She needs constant attention and requires a certain specific care. But again, there is nothing complicated in growing a bush. A little patience and effort, and you will get tasty and healthy fruits at your summer cottage.

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