Grow Your Own Blueberries

Duke, Toro, Reka, Sunshine Blue, Chippewa, Bluecrop, Chandler and Legacy. If you recognize these names, you might be salivating at the thought of all the delicious varieties of blueberry plants that grow here in the Pacific Northwest.

Now is a good time to shop for plants because with ripening berries you can sample the fruit from different varieties to discover favorites. Tasting can reveal subtle differences in flavors, ranging from mild to sweet to tart. Plants also produce fruit at different times, early, mid-season and late. It's good to buy at least two different varieties to help with pollination and fruit production. If the berries will be used all at once, for preserving or freezing, try varieties that bear at the same time. But if you want fresh berries for as long as possible, try planting early, mid and late fruiting varieties together in the garden to extend the harvest.  

Plant in loose, well-drained soil, free of weeds and with an adequate supply of moisture for successful growth and feed with an acidic fertilizer. Blueberry plants range in size from only 12 inches tall (Burgundy Wild Lowbush) to three to four feet which are great in containers (Sunshine Blue) to six feet tall (Reka). So, there is something that can fit in every garden. I have four blueberry plants, all growing well in containers.

-- Elaine Sawer is the founder of Rainyleaf, a blog about plants.