Keep your blueberry plants healthy and productive with these fertilization tips and more.
you better know thecondition of the soilto grow any plants successfully.
Garden soil can accumulate salts from overuse of fertilizers over time or become depleted of vital nutrients.
Credit:Laurie Black
Plus you’ll be able to tell whether thepH needs to be adjusted for acid-loving blueberry plants.
Blueberries grow best in well-drained, acidic soil with a pH of 4.3 to 5.3 andfortified with organic matter.
Once you know your soil pH, it’s possible for you to adjust it as needed.
The best fertilizer for blueberries gets its nitrogen from ammonium and not nitrate.
Blueberries are sensitive to nitrate, and their roots can be damaged by it.
Use a fertilizer that gets its nitrogen from urea, sulfur-coated urea, ammonium sulfate, or cottonseed meal.
Try a 7-7-7 or 4-3-4 fertilizer formulated for acid-loving plants.
Any fertilizer sold for azaleas or rhododendrons will work well for blueberries.
Cottonseed meal is also a good fertilizer forblueberry plants.
Fertilizer alone wont give you a bumper crop of blueberries, though.
you better feed the soil, too.
Rely on the soil test to tell you whatamendments to add to your soilto keep blueberries happy and healthy.
The amount of fertilizer you apply depends on the maturity of the blueberry plant.
Blueberry plants have shallow root systems that can be damaged if you dig in the soil.
Themulch also feeds the soilby adding organic matter as it breaks down.
Youll see steady growth and consistently high yields of blueberries if you mulch the plants.
Dont use mulch with a high pH, like mushroom compost.
Blueberries prefer acidic soil.
Yellow leaves could also mean the plant has a nutritional problem.
The three factors governing blueberry sweetness are sunlight, weather, and soil nutrition.
Get any of those wrong, and blueberries will be less sweet.
Yes, blueberries in containers still need an acidic-based fertilizer (without nitrates or chlorides) in early spring.
Add reflective streamers or bird netting to your bushes to keep birds at bay.
Growing blueberries in the home garden.
University of Minnesota Extension.
U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council.
Suggested Blueberry Fertilization Timings and Rates.
University of Georgia Extension.
Growing Blueberries in Containers.
University of Maryland Extension.
