Regardless of your soil type, however, blueberries can be grown by amending your soil with peat moss. Simply distribute a bale of peat (3.8 cubic feet) through the soil per 3 young bushes. The peat should be moistened first or it will dry out your bushes. (Mix the bale with water in an old tub or child’s plastic swimming pool – we stomp around in it in our muck boots to get it wet…and for recreation). Incorporate the wet peat with the native soil, add a light application of fertilizer or compost, plant your bushes and then cover the soil with a 3 -inch layer of softwood mulch (softwood needles, ground wood or bark, but never cedar).
Do not incorporate raw wood products with the soil or you will suck every last bit of nitrogen out of the soil. Although a light application of elemental sulfur each year will keep the pH low, it is unnecessary if you top dress the soil with softwood mulch annually. A pH level of about 4.5 is ideal for blueberries.
More information on blueberries can be found in our Research Library
