Keeping blueberries on hand is a great way to add sweetness and vitamins, and minerals to your breakfast or favourite drink. Blueberries are also good on their own as a snack. Blueberries can be a bit pricey, which is a shame.
But if you grow your own blueberries at home, you can skip the high prices and enjoy fresh fruit from your own yard. Here are some tips on how to grow your own blueberries:
1. Picky, picky, picky: Do a little study before planting your blueberry bush to make sure you get one that will grow best in your climate. Some berries do better in wetter areas, while others do just fine in cold weather.
2. Think about the acidity of the dirt. The pH of the dirt needs to be between 4 and 5. If your soil or weather isn’t good for growing berries, you can put them in pots instead.
3. Plant them right: Berries need a lot of sunshine and good soil. If you are growing them in the ground, choose a spot that gets a lot of sun. At least 5 feet should be left between each bush. Choose an 18-inch pot if you want to put it in a pot. Give them about 1 to 2 inches of water every week.
4. Watch out for them.
You can keep bugs, birds, and other hungry animals away from your plant by putting bamboo sticks around it and putting a food-safe net over it.
5. Don’t stop! Blueberry trees can keep making fruit for up to 20 years. To make sure your bushes live for a long time, cut them every few years. Because bushes that have been pruned won’t grow fruit the same year they are pruned, you may want to have more than one bush and prune them at different times.
6. Get the best: buds usually show up in early spring, and berries are generally ready to pick by July. Wait a few days after they turn blue. You’ll be able to pick ripe berries right off the bush.
If you live in a small place, growing blueberries is a great way to make your own garden on a patio or porch. If you have Facebook friends who would love to have their own blueberry patch, share these tips with them.