What did you do in the garden today?

[WIchickMama]

Yesterday I ordered 3 blueberry bushes, so I figured I better enlarge the blueberry plot. I got most of it dug out. The rest of this week is supposed to be chilly and sometimes rainy, so I might not get back to it. My back won't mind....

Anyone every heard of Reubel blueberries? I never have, but they are supposed to be extra high in all the antioxidant good stuff. I've wanted more bushes, so why not get those?

I would love to hear how the Reubel blueberries do once you have them established.

For blueberries, first timer here, do you need to dig up all the sod or can you dig a hole (like a tree) and plant? Thanks for the help

 

[TJAnonymous]

Lots of rain here....which is good because we needed it. Many of my trees are coming back to life. Most are at silver tip or green tip stage. My dogwoods are in full bloom and raining white petals everywhere. My blueberries even have a few flowers on them now. Speaking of blueberries....I'm pretty sure 6 out of 7 of my blueberry plants died last year. I still don't have the heart to remove them so I've left their dead skeletons in place....hoping I'm wrong and they will surprise me by coming back to life. I haven't planted the two new ones I got last month yet. I'm expecting a shipment from Stark Bros next week sometime with some more raspberry & strawberry plants. I have no clue where I will plant the raspberries.... I probably should have thought of that before I ordered. It was an impulse buy....ha ha. As for the strawberries, they are shipping 25 bare root plants. I probably didn't NEED that many.... I do have two tire beds ready for new strawberry plants but I'm not sure I can fit 25 in those beds. Hmm....decisions, decisions.

I also came across this picture of someone's seed storage. It got me thinking... I store mine in a padded envelope or in the refrigerator. How do you store yours? I think I need a better way to store & organize my seeds. Looking for some good ideas.

 

[Sally PB]

For blueberries, first timer here, do you need to dig up all the sod or can you dig a hole (like a tree) and plant? Thanks for the help

I don't know if I really need to dig up the sod, but it's field grass, not yard grass. I can't keep it from growing back in, but I wanted to get the newbies off to as good a start as possible. In case you didn't know, blueberries like very acidic soil, like 4.5-5.5 pH.

 

[WthrLady]

That's pretty much it, but in a smaller snap closed box.
They don't last forever, and germination rate loss each year can be quite high. I don't usually keep them more than 2 years.

 

[WIchickMama]

I don't know if I really need to dig up the sod, but it's field grass, not yard grass. I can't keep it from growing back in, but I wanted to get the newbies off to as good a start as possible. In case you didn't know, blueberries like very acidic soil, like 4.5-5.5 pH.

Thank you! I will be amending the soil in April and my plants are set to arrive in May.

 

[WIchickMama]

@TJAnonymous I freeze mine when I am done with them for the season, move to the fridge a few weeks before I plan to use them, so far has worked.

 

[jerryse]

Cloudy cool and rain through Thursday . Planted my sprouted hollyhock seed in cell packs . I need to up pot my tomato starts . I have Chester thornless blackberry starts coming this week ( bare root ) . 3 point brush mower is coming this week also .

 

[pennyJo1960]

Morning Gardeners bought starts at Sunbirds last week.
James the Son is headed to town will also buy a few bags of soil to put them and others .. The chickens did the cleaning of the tires for us. Now locked out of the garden.

 

[TJAnonymous]

Thank you! I will be amending the soil in April and my plants are set to arrive in May.

I would suggest taking a large sample of soil to your local extension office and have them test it for you. They will tell you exactly what amendments to add. I fertilized the heck out of my soil to ensure it was acidic enough. My blueberries started turning chloritic... When plants turn chloritic, it means SOMETHING is out of whack. But when I search online, I kept seeing "advice" that told me it was because the pH was too high. So I'd add more sulphur. Well....when the results of my soil testing came back, this is what it said:

Soil pH: 3.8
Phosphorus: 256 ppm
Potassium: 191 ppm
Zinc: 4.3 ppm

Optimum for Blueberries:
Soil pH: 4.5 - 5.5
Phosphorus: 36-50 ppm
Potassium: 131-175 ppm
Zinc: 4.1 - 8 ppm

So, as you can see, I nuked my blueberries without realizing what was happening in the soil. I got those test results back in early July last year. By that point, it was too late to save anything, I think. I stopped amending the soil immediately. I wasn't sure what to do to make it better so I figured I'd let it sit and naturally readjust. I lost 6 out 7 of my blueberry bushes. Only 1 survived.

Before I plant the 2 new ones I got, I will get the soil tested again to make sure it is right. Very expensive mistake on my part.... Oh, and btw, if you DO get your soil testing....make sure you have AT LEAST 2-4 cups of soil from each bed where you want to plant. Label them appropriately so you can tell them apart. This was another mistake I made because I didn't have ENOUGH soil to be tested the first time I took it in.

 

[WIchickMama]

I would suggest taking a large sample of soil to your local extension office and have them test it for you. They will tell you exactly what amendments to add. I fertilized the heck out of my soil to ensure it was acidic enough. My blueberries started turning chloritic... When plants turn chloritic, it means SOMETHING is out of whack. But when I search online, I kept seeing "advice" that told me it was because the pH was too high. So I'd add more sulphur. Well....when the results of my soil testing came back, this is what it said:

Soil pH: 3.8
Phosphorus: 256 ppm
Potassium: 191 ppm
Zinc: 4.3 ppm

Optimum for Blueberries:
Soil pH: 4.5 - 5.5
Phosphorus: 36-50 ppm
Potassium: 131-175 ppm
Zinc: 4.1 - 8 ppm

So, as you can see, I nuked my blueberries without realizing what was happening in the soil. I got those test results back in early July last year. By that point, it was too late to save anything, I think. I stopped amending the soil immediately. I wasn't sure what to do to make it better so I figured I'd let it sit and naturally readjust. I lost 6 out 7 of my blueberry bushes. Only 1 survived.

Before I plant the 2 new ones I got, I will get the soil tested again to make sure it is right. Very expensive mistake on my part.... Oh, and btw, if you DO get your soil testing....make sure you have AT LEAST 2-4 cups of soil from each bed where you want to plant. Label them appropriately so you can tell them apart. This was another mistake I made because I didn't have ENOUGH soil to be tested the first time I took it in.

Awesome thank you!