Gardening for Old Folks (Adaptative)

[Leahs Mom]

@oldhenlikesdogs
I would like to do the same with ours. Where they're planted was not the best place. What size are those pots? And are those high bush or low bush?

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

@oldhenlikesdogs
I would like to do the same with ours. Where they're planted was not the best place. What size are those pots? And are those high bush or low bush?

I would say they are about 2 feet across and probably 2 1/2 deep. I will double check when I go back out. I believe they are a mix of variety, not totally sure though. So I guess I'm no help currently. It something new we are trying as we downsize stuff. I have kept shrubs in pots long term, so I figured I should be able to keep blueberries in them too long term.

 

[bruceha2000]

It will be interesting to see if they can deal with "frozen feet".

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

It will be interesting to see if they can deal with "frozen feet".

My arborvitea and boxwoods do fine in pots all winter, I'm hoping blueberries can do the same. Around here our frost can go down 6 feet some years, so most shrubs are frozen in winter anyways.

 

[cavemanrich]

Be very sure you want yucca before planting. They are hard to get rid of if you change your mind. We had some in our flower bed in TN, they were there when we moved in. Despite attempts to dig them up and kill them, they were still there when we left.

Around here the method of killing yucca is to dig a circle around the plant and keep it filled with water if possible. They cannot take excessive amounts of water. I did manage to kill one by digging it out and the root was in excess of 8' deep.

I'm not an expert on Yucca plants, and there may be different varieties. Had these growing in a section of my flower bed, for well over 25 years. They did not multiply or spread very much during that time. I then redid my flower bed (5 or 6 years ago) and moved them to other end. Dug up and replanted. I think that for a year or two there were no flowers. Then things went back to normal. In their new spot they are doing same, NOT SPREADING. The new growth seem to be coming out of the roots. There are seeds, but I never tried to plant them. They would just fall to the ground. If these were very prolific, then those seeds would overtake that flower bed. It just has not happened with mine. I will try this autumn to take and plant some of those seeds in a different flower bed, and see if they sprout.

A couple of weeks ago we dug up our blueberry bushes that were getting overrun by thistles in the bed they were in. We have put them in big pots. We will see how they do. They haven't been productive where they were. I intend to leave them out all year round.

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Sounds like your blueberries are the "low bush variety" They are also referred to as "BILBERRIES" One way to easily check is to cut a berry in half. If the flesh is blue, then they are the Bilberries. If the flesh is grayish, and only the skin is blue, they are the High Bush common variety. Used to go picking them at an orchard in Michigan. Bushes were as tall as me.
My BFF that lives north of you in Ashland Wisconsin goes picking for wild blueberries (bilberries) in the North Woods.
My intention is to get a few of those small bushes and container grow them in large pots.

 

[R2elk]

I'm not an expert on Yucca plants, and there may be different varieties. Had these growing in a section of my flower bed, for well over 25 years. They did not multiply or spread very much during that time. I then redid my flower bed (5 or 6 years ago) and moved them to other end. Dug up and replanted. I think that for a year or two there were no flowers. Then things went back to normal. In their new spot they are doing same, NOT SPREADING. The new growth seem to be coming out of the roots. There are seeds, but I never tried to plant them. They would just fall to the ground. If these were very prolific, then those seeds would overtake that flower bed. It just has not happened with mine. I will try this autumn to take and plant some of those seeds in a different flower bed, and see if they sprout.

The kind of yucca that is here is definitely xeric and spreads quite easily from seeds. I am on a sand dune and the seeds sprout without any help from me. It is also low moisture here.

 

[Soon2BChixMom]

A couple of weeks ago we dug up our blueberry bushes that were getting overrun by thistles in the bed they were in. We have put them in big pots. We will see how they do. They haven't been productive where they were. I intend to leave them out all year round.

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Lovely area.
I still haven't planted my blueberry bushes yet. How will you keep them in winter?

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Lovely area.
I still haven't planted my blueberry bushes yet. How will you keep them in winter?

They will stay right where they are. The snow gets deep back in that area usually which should provide insulation, plus the stone walls of the barn foundation provides a wind break. I left a zone 5 arborvitae back there for a few years in a pot and it did fine, we are zone 4 here.

I'm not an expert on Yucca plants, and there may be different varieties. Had these growing in a section of my flower bed, for well over 25 years. They did not multiply or spread very much during that time. I then redid my flower bed (5 or 6 years ago) and moved them to other end. Dug up and replanted. I think that for a year or two there were no flowers. Then things went back to normal. In their new spot they are doing same, NOT SPREADING. The new growth seem to be coming out of the roots. There are seeds, but I never tried to plant them. They would just fall to the ground. If these were very prolific, then those seeds would overtake that flower bed. It just has not happened with mine. I will try this autumn to take and plant some of those seeds in a different flower bed, and see if they sprout.


Sounds like your blueberries are the "low bush variety" They are also referred to as "BILBERRIES" One way to easily check is to cut a berry in half. If the flesh is blue, then they are the Bilberries. If the flesh is grayish, and only the skin is blue, they are the High Bush common variety. Used to go picking them at an orchard in Michigan. Bushes were as tall as me.
My BFF that lives north of you in Ashland Wisconsin goes picking for wild blueberries (bilberries) in the North Woods.
My intention is to get a few of those small bushes and container grow them in large pots.

Interesting. I will find my tags to see exactly what they are. Only one has a sparse crop of berries on it, so I can only check the one when I'm eating them. The lack of a crop is the main reason for the move, well that and I'm getting too old.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

My pond is back in that area too. Is the back half of an old barn foundation. We rebuilt the roof on the good half, and turned the back into a garden.

 

[N F C]

My pond is back in that area too. Is the back half of an old barn foundation. We rebuilt the roof on the good half, and turned the back into a garden.

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Beautiful!