Blueberries are a delicious and nutritious berry of the cranberry family. The use of blueberries as a food is very useful for health, in particular, for sight and digestion, it contains vitamins C , B and P. It grows in woodlands, but it can also be grown in the garden. For this purpose, such varieties as Earliblue, Bluecrop and Spartan are suitable. Garden bilberry is a one-year plant. It should be planted in autumn, in October, as it blooms in May, and begins to bear fruit in the summer. And now let's find out more about the planting of garden blueberries and about caring for it.
How to plant blueberries in the garden?
To begin with, you need to decide where to plant blueberries - this should be a warm sunny place, but with the ability to plant the plant if necessary. Demanding for the acidity of the soil, blueberries "love" sour soil (at least 4-5 Ph). Be sure to fertilize the ground before planting with sawdust and peat, and after - carefully tamp and zamulchiruyte it.
Blueberry bushes are usually easy to take root, but between them there must always be a sufficient distance (not less than 1.5 m), otherwise the closely planted bushes will yield less than desired yield. Plant a blueberry in one or several rows, and after planting well, pour the soil, watering the plant with the moisture that is necessary to it.
Growing Bilberry Garden
The bush garden blueberry is demanding for irrigation and heat. In the wild nature of this plant, of course, no one watering, but garden culture in many respects differs from forest, and watering it will never hurt. Without it, the berries will be dry and tasteless. Maintain soil moisture constantly.
The lack of solar heat also has a negative effect on the fruits of blueberries, making them sour. Consider these moments before planting a blueberry garden, and with further care for the plant.
Additional fertilizing with organic and mineral fertilizers is also necessary. Apply mineral fertilizers to the ground at least once a season, while avoiding feeding, which includes chlorine. Top dressing with organic substances is better to postpone until the autumn, spending it once a year.
Around the bilberry bush should regularly loosen the ground, trying to do it neatly, since its roots are located close to the surface. In this case, the top (up to 10 cm) soil layer should be mixed with sawdust.
Reproduction of one-year-old garden blueberry
There are two main ways of breeding blueberries.
- The first of these is seed propagation. This method is very simple: crush the blueberry with your fingers, rinse it, remove the seeds, dry them and then sprout them in a prepared container with soil mixture. When the seedlings grow and get stronger, they can be planted in the open ground, following the rules described above. Can experiment by planting seed seeds of different varieties of garden blueberries.
- The second method is propagation by cuttings. In August, prepare suitable twigs, drop them into peat and cover
film. When the cuttings take root, transplant them into the ground in order to grow seedlings. Plant only the bushes with a well-developed root system, otherwise they will not get accustomed. Also do not spend planting in the spring time: the bilberry should overwinter. It is quite frost-resistant and well tolerates cold weather.
As you can see, planting, care and reproduction of garden blueberries are not particularly difficult for the gardener. The culture is rather unpretentious, little susceptible to diseases and attacks of pests, and therefore it is easy to grow. Plant blueberries on your garden plot, and let it please you with a good harvest!