How to Grow Blueberries and Preparing Best Soil for Blueberries

Growing blueberries is a great investment not only for health and well-being, but is also economically beneficial for those who start planting. Because blueberries contain abundant vitamin C content, are high in fiber, and have a delicious taste, they are preferred by many people, especially children who love them very much. They are processed into many dishes such as jams, jellies, drinks, confectionery, etc.

So how to grow blueberries and what is the best soil for blueberries to grow effectively, let’s find out and follow the article below with Coco Coir Global!

What Blueberries Need: Quick Tips When Growing Blueberries

•  It is recommended to start planting blueberries in spring in a place with plenty of sunshine (at least 6 hours a day) and few weeds.
•  Soil:
• Blueberries prefer acidic soil (pH from 4.0 to 5.3)
• Has good drainage
• Air-filled porosity and high in organic matter
• For production, it is best to plant at least 2 varieties of blueberries for successful pollination
•  Maintain humidity during the season, especially when you first start planting.
• You can harvest the fruit after at least three growing seasons before a moderate harvest; a bigger harvest comes after 5 years
• Every winter, it is recommended to prune old and weak roots

Popular types of blueberries recommended

It is a fact that fruits used in commercial cultivation often have higher yields and better resistance to heat and cold; Wild fruits are usually smaller but will be a lot sweeter.

The following are some varieties of blueberries you can start to grow:

How to grow blueberries

Choosing plant varieties

As mentioned above some popular varieties, however, you can also choose other favorite blueberries available in your locality to start farming. You can buy varieties at local nurseries or buy them online.

• If buying plants locally, look for potted plants that are at least two or three years old. Note, keep the potted plants adequately watered in a sunny place until planting, and should be planted as soon as possible.
• If you buy plants online, most likely they will arrive dormant and have bare roots. So you need to order early to get the best choice.

What you need to pay attention to is choosing a blueberry variety that is suitable for the climate, soil, and taste where you live. In particular, using two or more varieties of blueberries to flower at the same time will help cross-pollinate more efficiently and produce larger fruits.

Selection and preparation of blueberry planting sites

• The best space for growing blueberries is to choose a place that receives a lot of sunlight, avoiding areas surrounded by trees.
• Since the plant can block sunlight, provide plenty of shade, or compete for water and soil nutrients.
• In addition, clean up weeds before planting to reduce competition for nutrition. After blueberry bushes are planted, add 3 to 5 inches of mulch around each plant to help retain water and reduce weed growth.
• Ensure the planting area has well-drained soil
• You can mix more coco coir into the planting hole to keep the soil loose, drain better, balance pH, and absorb nutrients effectively.
• In addition, blueberry bushes can also be planted in containers if they receive enough sunlight and moisture.

Start planting your Blueberry bushes

How to grow blueberries from seeds

Step 1: Take blueberry seeds that have been frozen for at least 90 days.

• You can also grow blueberries by freezing blueberries, then taking thawed berries into a blender, pouring more water, and starting to grind within 10-15 seconds.
• Let stand for 5 minutes. The seeds will sink to the bottom while the pulp will be suspended in the water.
• Pour very slowly a little of this pulp and add clean water. Allow the seeds to settle again. Continue to repeat this cycle until all the pulp is removed and only the blueberry seeds remain at the bottom. Remove the seeds and spread them on paper towels to dry.

Step 2:

Fill a flat tray with moist coir substrate, sprinkle the seeds on top, then lightly coat with a layer of coir on top. Cover the surface with newspaper and place it in a room between 60 and 70 degrees F.

• Note: Keep the coir substrate moist

Step 3:

Seedlings will appear in about a month, at this time you can remove the layer of newspaper and place the tray filled with seedlings in a place where there is a lot of sunlight.

Continue to moisturize the seedlings in coir until 2 to 3 inches tall.

Step 4:

After the seedlings are 2 to 3 inches tall, you can continue to plant in containers with 100% coir substrate to help the plant grow in the best way.

Continue to moisturize them. Blueberries love a lot of water (but not too much because the soil will be waterlogged). The plant will bloom and give a few berries at the age of two.

Then you can plant them in the garden in the spring of the second year.

How to grow blueberries in the garden

• Blueberry bushes should be planted in rows, with the space between blueberry plants about 3 feet apart. If the cultivar you are growing has a specified size as larger, you can place them a little further apart (4 – 5 feet depending on the cultivar).
• Plant young blueberry bushes in late April or early May.
• Dig planting holes wide enough to accommodate all the roots and deep enough that you can cover the top roots with 3 to 4 inches of soil.
• Then, compact the soil around the roots and cover the coco coir layer, sawdust, peat moss, etc. from 2 to 4 inches around the crop.
• Water after planting to ensure the roots are supplied with moisture.
• Continue to water the plant regularly, enough to keep the soil moist but not saturated.

Notes on distance and depth

•  4 – 5 feet between trees
• 8 – 12 feet between rows for easy harvesting
• Be careful not to plant too deeply
•  For potted blueberries, plant them at the same depth as in a nursery pot.
• For bare-root plants, place the roots in a prepared hole, then cover it with soil and make sure the rooting pot is no deeper than 1/2 inch below the surface of the soil.

Soil preparation for blueberries

Blueberries love acidic soil to be able to grow well. Specifically, they require a pH between 4.0 and 5.3. If the pH of the soil is greater than that range, the soil will not be acidic enough for blueberries to grow.

If the pH is too high:

• The growth rate of the plant is slowed down.
• The leaves change color.
• The plant may die.

However, you can improve the pH in the soil by adding sulfur (which is acidic) or using sphagnum peat moss.

However, if you find this way time-consuming and complicated, there is a simpler but also extremely effective way to use growing media to replace the soil. Typically it is a coco coir growing medium.

With a well-treated coir substrate, you can grow your blueberries completely on 100% coconut coir substrates. Because pasteurized coco coir will easily control pH, EC, and humidity parameters – helping plants have the best growing environment.

Moreover, coir also completely meets the requirements of blueberries in terms of porosity, outstanding water retention, and drainage, and is highly effective in optimizing nutrient absorption.

Should I grow blueberries on 100% coir substrates?

Pay attention to blueberry care through the seasons

March: After the cold weather has passed. Prune the bushes before the trees start growing.

April, May: Plant new blueberry bushes.

May, June: Apply more mulch for the best growing season.

July: Harvest

July to September: Apply soil improvement measures.

September, and October: Mulch to protect plants from the cold of winter

November, and December: Build a fence around the tree to keep out animals.

Avoid common mistakes

• Carefully learn how to plant and the conditions before starting the crop
• The plant will not grow if the roots are too deep or too shallow
• Do not plant near wild plants, clean the weeds before planting, and add mulch to prevent weeds
• Pack soil firmly around the roots.
• Water regularly one to three times a week, not every day.
• Do not soak the plant in water for more than 1 hour.

 I wish you successful gardening and an early harvest!