Blueberry

Tamanna starts with ...
I bought a blueberry plant in April. It is small but has flowers in it. The nursery suggested to keep that as it is and it will give fruit. But it neither growing tall nor the fruits coming. What to do?

Merv says...
Blueberries will only grow successfully in acid soils. If still in a pot then plant out. Suggest you get a kit to test your soil and if necessary add flowers of sulphur to it to increase acidity.

Di says...
According to the growers in my area, there is a wide range of different varieties, all with different fruiting times. In Victoria this ranges from late Oct. to early May. It is adviseable to remove the flowers for at least the first two years, this will allow the plant to establish a strong growing habit.

Tamanna says...
Thanks to everyone who responded to my query.

Sue says...
I bought a NellyKelly bleberrie bush last year( Bout this time or a little bit later. It has nothing but blowmed since purching this. It has been in flower for the pst 6 weeks & has berries already formed & I grow it it a pot & add acid fertilizer to it once a year.) It has grow'n so well in 12 months i have been delighted.!!.

I also purchased 2 deciduous vatieties
the same year ( they have both died.) the Nelly Kelly is the best variety i can find. I will be purching more this season in which is soon. Pick them of your bush & then you know what a blueberry really TASTES LIKE.

Shaun says...
I bought a Sharpeblue and a Ned Kelly bush in January this year.
As I am a fly-in-fly-out worker in a mining town, I grow them in self-watering pots in Perth.
The potting mix that I used was simply builders sand, used tea leaves, some water crystals and some soil improver added to the mix.
I was told to water the plants with Yates Flowering/Fruiting fertiliser with a little squeeze of either lemon or orange juice added to it.
Surprise, surprise !!! I had already got almost 500g of blue berries from the bushes in the last 3 weeks !!

Shaun says...
I think it is the lemon juice that did the trick :-).

Where did you buy your plants, Leona?
I got my Ned Kelly from Bunnings and my Sharpeblue from Dawsons.
I'd like to purchase a Misty if I know where they are available in Perth.

JimmyH says...
Hi there, just purchase a couple of rabbit eyes and sharpblue,just i have read up on soil conditions and types. due to a small garden, and potting isnt really my preferred option, just wanted to know whether i can plant these plants next to my existing plants, i.e. Cherry Tree, Lemon Tree, and some mondo grass.
i also heard that peat moss is a good addition to soils, true?

cheers in advance.

Jim

Leona says...
Hi Shaun,
Good to hear you managed to get a Misty. I found a link with good info on rabbits eye and highbush (including misty and sharpeblue).
http://www.mountainblue.com.au/content/view/25/31/

Leona says...
All my bushes are still small so I dont get huge yeilds from any of them yet but both my Nellie Kelly and Sharpeblues give more fruit than my Mistys, so far. The Sharpeblue and Mistys grow to around two metres and the Nellie Kelly only to around one metre, so I presume that both former will bear more fruit eventually.

Leona says...
Hi San, they arent Ned Kellys they are Nellie Kellys :-) They are from Nellie Kelly Nurseries.

Anonymous says...
what are the soil requirements if planting blueberries in the ground?
by peter

Douglas says...
Does anyone know anywhere else to get blueberries from ?

Anonymous says...
If your in Moore River, Waldecks on Vine have them as well, plus TASS 1 down the road.

Leona says...
Dawsons stock Misty and Sharpeblue.

Deb says...
Shaun, your blueberry plants must be about 16 months old now. Do you recall how much fruit you eventually got from them (now that the season is over) and how many plants do you have? Cheers

Leona says...
Shaun,
I have those three varieties also (I think that is all that is available in Perth unfortunately). I found that the Misty is not as hardy as the other two and does not give as much fruit and the plants tend to be more leggy. I think the Sharpeblue is the best variety. I use Camellia and Azaelea Potting Mix for mine as it has the correct (low) PH for blueberries - I keep them in pots.

Leona says...
Shaun,
To be honest, I have no idea what the yield was as the kids and I just randomly pick them and eat them straight from the plant lol.

Deb says...
Thanks Shaun! That does help. I think I will have to start with one, but may buy one for a neighbour as a gift so that there is another close by. I think most people were mentioning they are available at Waldecks and also Dawsons so will try them both and see what they have available and when. Cant do much in my garden at the moment :( it's tiny and builders next door have taken down fence etc .... so planning for spring mostly! :) Cheers

Leona says...
Shaun, ummm...probably approx. 2 handfuls from the Sharpe and about a handful each from the Nellies - my plants arent very big at all yet.

g.bhorla says...
i grow blueberries commercially u need to grow em on mounds with dripline the best website to learn how to grow blueberries are www.mountainblue.com.au but even commercial growers dont know the secret one season could be great and the next season pretty ordinary

John says...
yeah, Joe rocks.

Shaun says...
I read in the West newspaper last Friday that Nellie Kelly blueberry plants are actually Sunshine Blue variety marketed under the Nellie Kelly own brand !!!

Geoff says...
Bunnings tried them a couple of times but as they plants supplied to them were rubbish one year, they sent them all back and had a huge falling out with nellie kelly.So I guess you wont ever see them there again. I saw some at the nursery just up exit 30. Forget its name.

KV says...
Bunnings still stock nellie kellys range as theres a bucketload of their stock at my store at the moment. We always recieve allocations of their passionfruit stock (as they started their business in pashy's) and had the blueberries stock in last year. Geoff, i suggest your horticulturalist at the bunnings store you go to is just a lazy prick and doesnt want to order them in. Id ask a different person or go to a different store to chase them up as every Bunnings store nationally has access to order nelliekelly products.

Geoff says...
I saw the plants and they were garbage. No way would I have bought them. Dont blame them sending them back. The grower was very unpleasant when i made polite enquiries as to where I could get some. They were the ones that told me they did not supply to Bunnings anymore. They had pure hate for Bunnings in my opinion by the words they used. Dont blame them.

Alan says...
Hi All,

I bought a Nellie Kelly early this year and grow it in apot using Azalea mix. I read that you shouldn't let your blueberry plant fruit for the first couple of years. Mine has got quite a lots of fruits this first year. Anyway, I was curious as to how my plant will trun out and let 20 of so fruits grow while I cleared away the rest. Now that the fruits had rippened, I found them pretty sour :( Does anyone have this problem? How can I improve the fruit quality? Will cross pollination from another variety help?

Thanks!

Russ says...
Blueberry's in stock at Tass 1 trees!!!

Julie says...
Alan, I've heard that blueberries need plenty of potash, which contributes to fruit sweetness.

Don't try and use wood ashes though, as they are too alkaline. Sulphate of potash should help.

Julie says...
Alan, fertilise in late winter to early spring - I think that's about flowering time anyway. May be too late now, but won't do any harm.

john says...
you guys go and see joe at tass 1 trees checkout his blueberrys and ask him.. hes got some ready and quite tasty to..and try his barbados cherry its fruiting at the moment..hes got pitomba and peanut butter tree in flower.. i don`t know how he does it..

Shaun says...
Where did you see Floraland's advertisement, John?
What other berries has it got / advertised?

Shaun says...
Thanks for your response, John.

I called you on the weekend, but was told you'd been away on holidays.
I am certainly keen to have 1 x Chilliwack and perhaps 2 x Heritage.

I also rang Floraland regarding their berry plants. Thy have:
1) Blueberry (2 types of Rabbiteye varieties for cross pollination, and 1 Highbush variety
2) Raspberry (Autumn Bliss + 2 other types of summer-bearing varieties)
3) Blackberry
4) Boysenberry

Cost of approx $35.00 per pot for Blueberry (very pricey),
....and a lot less expensive for "other berries" (approx 10/=)

Shaun says...
Well, they said "blueberries" in "big" pot with "big grown plants" .... in a 200mm pot, I s'pose.
Well, Dawsons also have such big plants now, but it is retailing at approx 50/= !!!
Much more expensive than Floraland.

Russ says...
I went to floraland on sunday. Blueberry variety is Brightwell. They didn't seem to have any other varieties. A significant number were burnt due to overhead watering. Although in larger pots than those Tass1 has for $15 the plants were not significantly bigger. Steve (floraland) also advised not transplanting for a month or so. All in all would say not value for money, but i got one anyway.

The raspberry varieties were autumn bliss, stanford & tulameen. $22 each (1 cane). All raspberrys looked healthy as did the thornless blackberry and bosenberry (also $22).

Henry says...
Could somebody provide a picture or two or details of height & width of an established blueberry bush, please. I just need to know as I have a spot in my backyard and am not sure if the space is sufficient. Moreover, are the flowers fragrant?

Matt says...
Purchased a southern highbush biloxi from Swanes Nursery in Dural for around $20 on the weekend. Had a fair few in stock, Nellie Kellies also.

Cheryl says...
I bought a couple of blueberries today from the garden centre on Wallgrove Road at Horsely Park. They were on half price special, normally $16 per plant.

russ says...
Apart from @ floraland i haven't seen anything but nellie kelly available. Let me know if you find any.
Russ

Itdepends says...
Try online e.g. Diggers has quite a few varities available. I've already got my order in- just waiting for shipment now :)

Daniel

aneh says...
hi just wondering if anyone has had any luck propagating blueberry cuttings?

Saxman says...
Hi some of my Blueberrys are flowering but i'm a bit worried as it seems many flowers are falling off without growing a fruit beneath. Things have been fine in the past, so i'm not sure what i can do. Ideas anyone?

Saxman says...
Ok cool thanks for that Daniel! Also, do you think i should prune back the branches that flower but don't fruit?

Ellen says...
Hi Shaun,

I've got mine, the one in the picture above (up)just July 08, over the summer it gave me alot of fruits, but now all the leaves are changing color to reddish/gold, I would say don't worry, just give it a good watering every 2-3 day or so just so the soil doesn't get dried out . Even though it goes dormant doesn't mean that it's dying, it is just resting, the root system still need to be kept moists so it can keep the plant alive. Don't prune it just yet, do so only toward the end of the winter season. B/c if you are pruning it now you will be hurting it, this might cause it to die back some more .

I also got 2 of Misty variety -even though the leaves are changing into rustic red color, it is also in blooming with flower buds and setting fruits right now as well (funny)
As for my Backyard Blue and my Sharp Blue varieties, these trees are forming buddings right now as well .

Currently all of my Blueberries trees are in pots. (For easy relocation)as I find out that it doesn't take so kindly to the summer heat of 32 degree or above in temperature .

Manda says...
Hi Kath,
I have ordered some blueberries from Diggers... still yet to get this yrs order.

I got a few things last year and they travelled well.... the stock i got last yr were all tube stock. I will give feedback about the blueberries when i get them

Manda says...
Hi Kath,

THe blueberry i ordered from Diggers arrived this week... It travelled well... It has minimal leaves on, but lots of pink buds and it is suprisingly tall (bot 25 cm tall) given that it is in a small tubestock pot... So i was happy with it.

Shaun says...
Hi Manda,
What varieties of Blueberries did you buy from Diggers this time?

Saxman says...
Rats! They're out of stock now of the Revielle at Digger's. I ordered some others though. You gotta get in quick hey?

My Sharpe Blue has some darkening/blackening leaves yet is fruiting somewhat even though there is not a lot of new growth- looks like it can't make up its mind what season its in! I may take some pictures and put them up.

Itdepends says...
tis funny- I watched when diggers canes/blueberries were due to be available- and they came up as available for ordering a day earlier than posted on the site- put my order in straight away. Maybe I'm paranoid- but I didn't want to miss out this time.

I'm glad the revielle tastes good- I got two of those :)

Daniel

Lisa says...
Daniel, I also did the same. I write down in my diary when the plant is available and ordered it that day so not to miss out. I got my order too last week and you would have thought it was Christmas at our house last week :)

Lisa

Saxman says...
Hi Jimmy, Shaun, just wondering have you any idea how well Blue Rose, Brigetta, Northland and Denise do in the warmer regions such as Perth? I did read somewhere they may need more cold days than some other varieties to fruit well.

Cheers

Saxman says...
Cheers for that Shaun, I won't get them for another 4 weeks and then we shall see! (I'm right into this berry growing now.)

Any notion on how high a fence trellis would have to be for loganberries, boysenberries and blackberries? I just got some bare rooted canes from floraland...
Don't suppose i should expect berries in the first season?

Thanks,
Craig

Liz says...
Hi all... Dawsons (in Forrestfield) still had quite a few (definitely some Sharpe Blue, possibly also Misty and Nelly Kelly?) when I was last there in late April. (...surprised me, since they sold out almost instantly in Oct/Nov 2007, and I was on their pre-order list for Oct/Nov 2008.)
Cheers,
Liz

Saxman says...
Thanks Daniel - I was told that at least in the case of the thornless blackberry it doesn't sucker, but yeah thanks for the warning ...it may be prudent to take root barrier precautions anyway!

If it does get away it'll be blackberry liqueur all round lol

Cheers!

russ says...
Also, not having much luck with the boysenberry. At one point i thought it was a lost as all leaves went brown, but new groth managed to survive and it has come back a bit. Not really grown though since i got it. Any tips would be good.
It was previously against a NE facing wall where it was getting all day sun, although i have just moved it to the south west so that it only get late evening indirect light. Is this the way to go in the perth climate?
Also what PH should i be aiming at with the soil?

amanda says...
Why is it that we haven't given the WA summer easterly a proper name yet? It's notorious enuf' to deserve a more interesting name!? There is, after all, the sirocco, el nino .. etc etc.
(I call it the Beasterly myself..but not very imaginative)

amanda says...
Maybe 'The Beasterly' has an indigenous name? There are many different dialects tho'.

Ellen says...
Michael,

At Power Flower in Bass Hill they got blueberry-Delight & Tifblue varieties

only $ 15, it's my arm length in height . Blooming in flowers and flower buds .

If I didn't already have 6 in my collection already, I'd get 1 or 2 more .

Jason says...
Thanks Daniel, Some good info there

Saxman says...
Hi all, I read in some web site today that blackberry, boysenberry, loganberry - canes can be grown in large pots like blueberries! Anyone have any experience with this? because it would be my preference if its at all workable. Then if they're not doing so well with the beasterlies it'll be a breeze to shift ha ha. But seriously folks... ???

Saxman says...
Cheers Russ, I'm going to give that a go then and get a bigarsed trellis or two happening. And well see what goes : )

Hey anyone got a really good blueberry pie recipe? I just did one with some frozen berries from last season i still had in the freezer (a miracle find) but the pastry was a bit dud. Like a few others who have posted I've got a lot of fruit on my blueberries right now even though its winter. New growth is finally beginning though, which is pleasing!

michael says...
Hey Ellen thanks for that I only just got it and fear they will be gone but might check out my local flower power at warriwood.
Thanks!

amanda says...
I think I am going to get rasberried for this but...
1) why do we expect our plants to fruit within 1 or 2 yrs? It's unrealistic.
(but prob'ly symptom of 'modern life' ie: no patience!?)

2) Mother Nature (or whomever) does not keep our "human" timetable.

3) If something is not "performing" to our "expectations" - why do we feel the need to throw mega quantities of fertilisers at it?

I am really curious as to what others think/feel? Humans have been gardening for 1000's of years - without chemical "fix-it's"... and we still cannot match their production.....??

Itdepends says...
As blueberries require chill- a glass house would make it worse

JUJUBE FOR SALE IN MELBOURNE says...
I bought a 5 years old bluerose blueberry (very bushy plant) for $35 at Wantirna market (Melbourne) last week. Originally it was 1.2 meters tall but was pruned back.

If you are interested you may get some from this market tomorrow (Sunday).

If you are in Melbourne and serious about growing blueberry, in stead of making your own soil using expensive peat from Bunnings 5 litres for $5 you could get 220 litre of the same peat for $44 (whole sale open to public) in citygarden plastic shop in monbulk.

www.citygardenplastic.com

In stead of buying 5 bags of Azaria mix for $40 using this money to buy peat and mix with your own soil you could make 20 bags at least and also helping smaller and friendly retail too.
They sale most of garden products.

Jason says...
My two have lost almost every leaf. Covered in growing berries however.

Nothing too much to worry about.

Do they need repotting if they came via post in small pots?

Saxman says...
Yeah thats my next job, but don't think i can afford half wine barrels, though that'd be superb!

Hoping these 4 little seedlings will live... some have show signs of budding so i may get lucky. Soon as i get some good photos done i want to post them up.

Thanks guys

brad says...
Hi Liz,

that sounds interesting. is that a mail-order place or can you walk in and shop for home gardener (small) quantities?

Brad

rus says...
John,
Do you know what varieties that Joe is getting?

brad says...
I just phoned Tass 1. He said he's got large tubestock (20-30cm plants) of brigitta and northland varieties for $20 at the moment. I'll check them out on the weekend if I find the time.

He also said he's got Qld Blue (Nelly Kelly) coming in 6-8 weeks, but nothing else he told me about

Trudy says...
Hi, Please could you advise which of your BlueBerry plants is the best suited to Perth, has the largest berry. Sharpe, NellyKelly or Misty.
I was told TASS 1 have Bridgetta and Southland for sale in 3/4 weeks.
Thank you.

Jantina says...
Peat moss will increase acidity in the soil well. I have used it to acidify aquarium water( for species like neon tetras.) I like the idea of using lemons to acidify as well as we all normally have a surplus of these.From Geoff, Jantina's husband.

Trudy says...
I was told by Bunnings that they may source their BlueBerry plants from a W.A. Grower and are visiting the grower within 2 weeks.
Dawsons & Waldeck will not be getting their NellyKelly blueberry plants until Nov./Dec. Dawsons price will be $16/17.
Beaufort Nursery, Inglewood should have Blueberry plants late Oct. for $16
Floraland has a few Rabbiteye plants for $35 (large plants).

Itdepends says...
Personally I find Misty blue better (more prolific) than Sharpeblue.

Bit early in the season for blueberry plants- they should be available closer to Xmas as noted above.

Trudy says...
Hi, I have taken your advice and am buying different varieties.
I have ordered 2 BlueRose Blueberry plants from EBAY FOR $16 total including post.(CULTURED in a lab in Bango N.S.W.)-(10 week wait) Has anyone tried this variety in WA.or brought cultured plants?
Thank you for your advice.
Trudy

Kath says...
I am in W.A & bought four different varieties from Diggers-they are allowed to be sent over to us if they pass quarantine apparentally.

Trudy says...

I am in WA but thought the following "free of any desease/pests" would be allowed through Quarantine.
EBAY DESCRIPTION
"Blueberry Plants This listing is for 2 High Bush Blueberry Plants variety Blue Rose grown from tissue culture in our lab.
The benefits of tissue culture is that large quantities of plants can be grown in a sterile enviroment so the plants you get are FREE of any disease or pest that you may find in field grown plants."

I was told "Quarantine Dept." that Blueberries from Victoria need Certificates 17B (Grape Phylloxera) and 45B (Potato Cyst nematode) but will recheck for N.S.W.
Thank you for the information.

Brad says...
Hi Saxman, (or anyone else)

are your blueberries near the coast or river in Perth? I'm intending on buying two blueberries for pots, but I'm in Como so wary of not getting the chill hours needed for some varieties.

I got out to Tass1 and he wasn't sure how well his Northland and Brigitta ($15 small - but he has LOTS) would go here compared to the Swan valley or hills. So my current thinking is to wait until Sharpe and Nelly Kellys are available around November as I get the feeling they'll do quite well here.

Your advice?

thanks,

Saxman says...
Agreed Shaun - I have the same: My 7 mature plants are Nellie Kelly, Sharpe and Misty which are fruiting prolifically. Brad, I'm in Canning Vale (not near a river). My other plants (mostly immature) are Northland, Brigetta, Denise and Blue rose. They were just sticks (some had zero leaves!) at first and i was a bit concerned when i got them but they have now developed some good healthy looking growth. Amazing how fast things happen when you get busy with life!!! i remain confident they will all fruit well eventually, though my little plants will be a year or two off. Even though they're so young i just noticed the beginnings of some flowers on some of these plants which i will pick off soon! So i'm not that worried about the low chill thing. Its worth the risk anyway i reckon at about $15. Better odds than a lotto ticket!!! And I'm sure my berries are bigger this year than last, which supports Shaun's comment about having more varieties!

Trudy says...
Hi, Could anyone advise the size of the Sharpe, Misty, Northland and Brigetta when full grown.
I have paid and ordered 4 blueRose which grow to 3ft (Cost approximately $5 ea) and want a similar size plant (NOT 6ft or higher) to cross polinate -
Diggers have advised their plants are $7.50 plus $7.50 postage and if 3 plants are ordered the postage is still $7.50 -
Trudy

Saxman says...
Hi Trudy, have you already done your order from diggers? If not, would you mind allowing me to add a couple of raspberries to your order? I pass by your suburb fairly frequently, but if its a hassle, i understand =)

Saxman!

Chris says...
boy, I really sympathise with you WA people trying to get hold of plant material. Sounds like more of an ordeal than actually growing the plants.

Trudy says...
I will be ordering one plant from Diggers - so YES I can order include your order -
Trudy

Saxman says...
Here are most of my current berry plants (on the correct post this time!) Basically looking for gooseberries, raspberries and gogi berry now.

Pictures - Click to enlarge
Picture: 1	Picture: 2	Picture: 3
Picture: 4	Picture: 5	Picture: 6
Picture: 7	Picture: 8	Picture: 9
Picture: 10

Saxman says...
Ha! Just past Maccas off Nicholson! So small a country =) So huge amount of fruiting plants to grow...

Saxman says...
Hi Brad, Thanks! Actually they're not at all full size yet and I've pruned them once by about a third last year- but i don't think I'll do that this year. Eventually if they're ever not happy I'll put them in those massive pots, but won't put them in the ground. I really like the portability factor. I bought my pots in stages (expensive) but come to think of it a bulk pot order makes sense - I'd definitely be prepared to do a combined order with others on this site! The couple of sites i looked at had them in amounts too large for me alone.

Jimmy says...
dude, rotate the photos before you post them.

Jimmy says...
I grow mine in a spot where the east wind can't get them and the afternoon shade is on them.

I mulch them heavily with the cheap peet you get from City Farmers and water heavily.

See my edibles for piccys/

Shaun says...
Hi Saxman,
The Tourist Info Centre should be able to give you the directions to get there.
It is open for pick-yourself blueberries when the season is open.
It is in Sebbes Road just outside of margaret town, nest among the various vineyards.
The phone number of the Blueberry Farm is 08-97577558.

The other Blueberry near Collie is the Cardiff Blueberry Farm, just outside of Collie township.

Shaun says...
U r welcome, Saxman.
BTW, the Sebbes Blueberry Farm in Margaret do sell their plants,
but the one in Collie-Cardiff are rather secretive about the varieties of Blueberry they grow, and does not supply any plants (only the berries/fruits are for sale).

Damo says...
Yep, he flogs his home grafted citrus and old stock this way every year.

Tiggerbow says...
There is also a blueberry farm in Stoneville.

Stoneville Blueberry Farm
240 Blue Wren Pl
Stoneville WA 6081
(08) 9295 0767

I think they do pick your own blueberries type thing - I haven't been there before but might try it with my young son.
Not sure if they give any info/ plants etc...

Trudy says...
Bunnings will have Blueberry plants in November - Varieties Brugetta, Blue Rose, Climax and Denise - (from Rockingham)

Shaun says...
Mine bushes seems to be stunted too after the sudden heatwave spell that occured around Christmas last year.
Just keep your potting mix moist, and protect your plants from extreme heat and strong wind .....
Feed them at the first sign of growth with fertiliser low in Potash to encourege more leafy growth rather than flowers (blood n bone seems to do the job).
My stunted Blueberry bushes seems to have come back to life this spring .....
so hope they will gain more growth this year.

Glen says...
I've just found this forum - and need some advice, if someone would be kind enough to help.

I'm trying to grow blueberries for the first time, and I've attached a photo of the browning leaves - all the same shape of browning. We;ve had rather a lot of rain here in the Blue Mountains - would this cause this? Or do I have some nasty thing I don't know about.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Many thanks -
Glen

Pictures - Click to enlarge
Picture: 1

Brendan says...
Hi Glen,
Looks like the old 'leaf-tip-burn' to me. You can google it if you like, but I'd apply lots of gypsum around your tree, scratch it into the surface, mulch it, but keep the mulch away from the tree trunk, then water it in.

This should help to dissipate any 'salts' in your soil, that appear to be burning the leaf tips.

I've just bought an avocado tree back from the brink with too much gypsum. Had ~50% of the leaf tips burnt. I'm also on bore water, I reckon that had a lot to do with it.

You can now buy liquid gypsum. I'd use both.

Brad says...
Ages ago Aneh asked about propagating blueberries, according to this pdf

Blueberries propagate relatively easily from hardwood cuttings taken during winter and soft,tip cuttings taken during summer. If you know someone who grows great blueberries in your region, why not ask them for a cutting. That way you are sure of getting a variety proven to perform in your climate.

Since blueberries are quite similar to Rhododendrons, the following link implies layering could work too. http://www.flounder.ca/FraserSouth/basics/propagation.asp

Problem is... I'm yet to get my blueberries so i can try it :)

Itdepends says...
I'm finding the Nelly Kelly is extremely prolific- but doesn't taste quite as nice as the Misty Blue.

Can't compare to any others yet- as I don't have fruit on the rest this year.

Jimmy says...
Tass 1 have fresh stocks of northland and birgitta berries.

Jimmy says...
www.canr.msu.edu/vanburen/e-2066.htm

half high bush and low bush so chilling is between?

Northland
Spreading, vigorous bush to 1.5m. Very productive with medium size, dark, sweet fruit. Large picking scar makes fruit unsuitable for wholesale market sales, but is an excellent variety for U-pick, local sales, and for processing. Fruit hangs without dropping and gets progressively sweeter. Northland performs exceptionally well in areas of extreme summer and winter temperatures.

Brigitta
Tall vigorous upright bush to 2.4m with high production. Very large, medium blue, firm fruit with good flavour. Excellent picking scar and keeping quality. An Australian developed variety Brigitta is now being widely grown world wide. Clusters can be tight and the bloom damaged easily. Ripens two weeks after Bluecrop with similar size berries. Fruit can drop easily so care when hand harvesting is required. Probably the best keeping and shipping variety available. A favourite with exporters. For pollination purposes it is best if planted near another variety

Saxman says...
Man my blueberries are fruiting/ripening so well right now I've got a freezer full. Gonna make some serious jam i think or compote/ already done pancakes,blueberry vanilla cake, muffins but the best is a bowl full fresh off the bushes with a little yoghurt. I reckon its turning into a bumper season. How's everyone else's going? Must say I'm beginning to share (unwillingly) with the birds now. There's probably plenty to spare them a few with the amount of trees i have i guess but i may soon have to invest in some nets or something.

Over and out

Julie says...
amanda, I had blueberries a while ago, and they did really well in pots. I think you could keep them in pots for quite a while, as they are not huge plants.

Mine were on a north-facing wall, so got sun exposure all-year-round.

I'm sure they would do OK if you put them behind a windbreak or shrub that would protect them from the wind. The good thing about pots is you can move them around to suit the seasons.

Julie says...
Well mine seemed to do OK with sun all day. I was prepared to move them if they didn't, but they were fine. It surprised me, as they are from a much cooler climate.

As I said, with plants in pots you have the chance to experiment with the site. Blueberries don't seem to have the same problem with shrivelling in hot winds as other types of berries. But I don't think they are related to the blackberry etc family. Are they?

Jimmy says...
Mine are in afternoon shade, they like it moist.

Hi Shaun !!

amanda says...
Thanks guys - the self watering pot might be the go for me! ;-) They are such delicious little fruits - I imagine home grown would be even better!

cesar says...
I am new to growing blueberries here in Melbourne. I've got a couple and they are growing well in pots. Do I need to fertilize them? If so, what should I use?

Steph says...
Hi Trudy,

You say that you "..ordered 2 BlueRose Blueberry plants from EBAY FOR $16 total including post.(CULTURED in a lab in Bango N.S.W.)-(10 week wait)"...

Have you received your plants?!? I ordered Blueberries from the same seller (shanesmagicland/Baxter Berentai) on 11th Sept - more than 10 weeks ago. I have received nothing despite being in communication with him until recently. Now that the 10 weeks are up I'm getting no response from him via eBay nor direct email.

Was the '10 week wait' thing a scam, to get around eBay/PayPal's buyer protection? Any idea how else to contact him?

Thanks!

Saxman says...
Hi Cesar; Turning purple is good. Just keep waiting...patience! The longer on the bush the sweeter the berries and the more antioxidants they will have! Give plenty of water... I was told that they need fertilizing only once a year with (for example) slow release Azalea food, but i've had success also using a seaweed solution every 2 -3 weeks and the odd bit of thrive. They're lovin it.

Itdepends says...
Our local Waldecks has Blue Rose and Climax in- I've never heard of Climax. Nice size plants but $30 each.

Mick says...
Steph,

I also ordered the Ebay blueberries from shanesmagicland/Baxter Berentai - never received them, got no response to email, and he is no longer an ebay member.

I found his facebook profile but no other way to contact him - doesn't seem to be listed in phone book.

BTW, I ordered some blueberries from Daleys and they are absolutely fantastic plants!

Brad says...
Finally, I'm in the gang - owner of blueberry plants :) Thanks to those here for the advice.

Tass 1 was letting buyers taste the blueberries he'd picked from a wine barrel pot (in full sun). The really dark one he picked fresh off the plant was unbelievably yum.

For the record I got: a Northland (Tass 1 $25, extra year's growth), Sharpeblue and Misty (Dawson's Forrestfield, $19 small). Tass1 also had small Northland and Brigitta for $15 and is expecting some Sunshine Blue (Nelly Kelly) in a week

cesar says...
Thanks saxman. But I've got some bad news, something has been eating my blueberries. I havent even tasted one. I think they might be snails as the berries are netted. The same happened with some strawberries until I moved them around. There are some berries still (green). See how it goes...

Trudy says...
Hi Steph, I paid for 6 blueberry cuttings. My last email from Shanesmagicland was October -since then EBAY erased all records of him from my Computer. For the last 4 weeks I have been emailing EBAY (Astrid) for any communication advice and after 5 futile replies (I do not believe she understands plain English) I was referred to Charles who supplied the following details
Name: Shane Cutting
Address: Bargo
Email:baxter.berentai@hotmail.com
Phone/Fax (disconnected)
I telephoned after two emails - no reply
If I get any info. I will let you know.
He did seem genuine and said middle of December for delivery.
If you want to discuss options, SMS my mobile 0424300009
Since then I have purchased a Blueberry plant (with blueberries on it) and order SunShine from Beaufort St.Nursery.
Trudy.

juanita says...
Our bunnings here sells diff. varieties of blueberries & i just bought mine called "brigitta" w/ 2 tiny fruits on it.

Julie says...
Try a smear of vaseline low down on the stem. If you don't want it to contact the stem, you could wrap foil around and grease that.

Charles says...
1 Litre Vasaline pot works for me , might get some raised eyebrows when you buy it though:)
Apply as described on the stem but make sure no folage touch anything else or the ants will just change their path. Only issue is that other crawling predators wont be able to protect you plant. I wouldnt advise doing this pemanently, just save your fruit then wipe/wash it off.

Sam says...
Damo i picked 875grams from 1 bush 2day

CA says...
I had two Sharpe and one Misty growing in pots. This is the third summer for the Sharpe, and the second for the Misty.They were prolific producers. In summer I move the pots so that they get afternoon shade, otherwise the leaves get burnt. Although they tend to grow a new lot after any burning happens.

Unfortunately earlier this summer my largest on died. I think, because I allowed it to get "wet feet" by puuting a saucer under the pot. One of the others looked sick too, and I removed the pot saucer and it is doing okay.

Cesar could it be grasshoppers eating your blueberries? I have had grasshoppers eat a few of my fruit.

Harro says...
Hi everyone I have just bought a sharpe from Dawsons Forrestfield $19 I would like to get another Im not sure which one for Perth. Bunnings have Nellie Kellie a bit cheaper is that okay.
Cheers Harro

Jason says...
Id agree with Jimmy, My misty and sharpe from dawsons are both growing great guns.

$19 last year, they are now about 2 or 3 times bigger than the ones they have for $50

(still got some fruit in the first year, this year should be good)

Pictures - Click to enlarge
Picture: 1

Harro says...
Thanks guys I think I will go back to Dawsons and buy a misty.
Cheers Harro

Brad says...
Sorry to hear that Cesar.
It would be nice if anyone who knows what bacterial canker or blight looks like could tell me if it resembles the above photos or not