Fill containers with a good quality acidic potting soil mix that contains peat moss and compost. It’s light brown in color. I already mulched with peat moss but i have read conflicting statements about using it as mulch. Where the soil is poor or marginally drained, raised beds 3–4 feet (0.9–1.2 m) wide and 8-12" high work very well for blueberries.A fail safe way to grow blueberries in almost any soil is to incorporate peat moss into the planting medium. On a heavy clay soil or a soil that sometimes remains wet, put the peat-sand mixture on the soil surface. 2057 Prepared by Tom DeGomez, Extension Blueberry Specialist and Dr. John Smagula, Professor of Horticulture, The University of Maine, Orono, ME 04469. Mulch is an important tool in your raspberry garden to keep weeds from leaching needed nutrients and water from the soil. Peat moss does make the soil very loose and airy – something Rhododendrons like, so maybe this extra aeration is the reason peat moss works. Your problem may be having too much change in soil texture from the peat you added, to the native soil surrounding the hole. Test your soil in advance and begin acidifying the soil a year ahead of when you will plant the blueberries. Instead of peat moss, can I use forest floor for organic matter enrichment. Set the plant at the same depth it grew . Blueberries p… Line the hole with heavy duty plastic. There is a whole series of techniques that go along with its use as a mulch which I get to show off once a year when I get a bag of peat moss for something that seem to confound everyone that works with me. When planting blueberries some experts recommend removing one-third to one-half of the soil and replacing with peat moss. Blueberries are becoming increasingly popular due to their delicious and healthy fruit. However, this material has a high pH (7 to 8). Blueberries have a very fine and fibrous root system so mulching is a must as well as frequent irrigation. If you were to buy the peat moss from us at our wholesale price it would be $1,400. Peat moss is never shipped wet, at least I have never seen it shipped wet in my thirty years in the industry. The mining process is regulated and hence, only 0.02 percent of the reserves are accessible for harvesting peat moss. It has a remarkable ability to manage water efficiently and hold on to nutrients that would otherwise leach out of the soil. Fill the hole with the peat/soil planting mixture and tread around the plants using the ball of your foot to firm them in. Sphagnum peat comes from sphagnum moss and is available in small bags or larger compressed bundles. The first time I planted blueberries, I used pine sawdust to kill the weeds, then used the sawdust for mulch. Water well with rainwater and finish off by mulching with moss peat or shredded bark. As winter turns to spring, turn the soil until there is a mixture of about 30 percent peat moss and 70 percent garden soil. Fill with builders sand (NOT BEACH SAND) to about 5 inches from the top, and level it. trademarks are registered trademarks of Gardens Alive! Downsides to Using Peat Moss as Mulch. The second consideration should be how will the mulch affect weed growth/management? After planting, thoroughly water each blueberry plant. For clay and heavy soils that get compact easily, it softens the soil structure and improves the drainage. Mulching them with rotted sawdust, wood chips, pine needles, or shredded leaves will encourage this level of acidity and help keep their shallow roots moist and cool. It's also best to put some organic matter under the weed mat, like bark or sawdust -- no more than 2" deep. Peat moss is an excellent soil amendment for your acid-loving plants. I have a compounded question. Peat moss became available in the 20th century but the dry, brown substance often purchased in the form of bags of sphagnum peat moss, but the end product is very different from the original plant. Mix up a 50-50 peat/sand mix put on top of the sand. A good mulch conserves moisture by preventing evaporation from the soil surface and is particularly beneficial on light sandy soils. Oops, there seems to be an error, please re-enter your email address. Peat moss literally prevents any water from draining! Growing Blueberries in the Home Garden ... mix 1 cubic ft of peat moss with an equal amount of sand. If a yearly mulching with naturally acidic materials like peat moss and shredded oak leaves can't keep the pH low enough, you'll have to turn to sulfur. Blueberries, Azaleas, and Peat Moss. Mulching with organic materials, such as pine bark, pine needles, leaves, hay, wood chips, sawdust or other organic materials is very beneficial for soil health. The soil analysis says that there is 3-4% organic matter at the top soil. The reason we use a mulch is that blueberries like high organic matter soils, the mulch helps control annual weeds, and helps conserve soil moisture making irrigation management easier. Sawdust, woodchips, ground bark or peat moss are excellent materials for mulching blueberries. Suzanne July 06, 2020. I already mulched with peat moss but i have read conflicting statements about using it as mulch. With a little effort, these "wonder berries" can be produced by home gardeners throughout Georgia. Note also that peat moss doesn’t provide any nutrients. This can be done by working compost and peat moss into the soil and removing all weed growth. Bogs and fens form where sphagnum grows because both living and dead moss absorb and store water. The plants are shallow rooted and don’t like competition from weeds, so mulch under and around the blueberries with newspapers covered with peat moss. Sawdust, woodchips, ground bark or peat moss are excellent materials for mulching blueberries. Peat moss has been used as a soil amendment for so long because it has a lot to offer. … You may opt to use any kind of mulch, but just refrain from using barnyard manure because of its high salt content. And there is a limit on how much soil pH can be altered. Each mulch type has its advantages and disadvantages, and some work better for certain plants than other types. Inc. on Orders of $75 or more (excludes overweight shipping). Do not just plant a single shrub. Sustainability It is typically mixed with white specks of perlite, a mineral that is expanded by heating. This video will show you the basics to planting blueberries. The size of the hole, use of peat moss for acidity, planting depth and other basic information. We generally recommend 1 bale of peat moss and 4 bags of pine fines for every 10 blueberry bushes. Also, avoid manures or horse bedding for the same reason. The pot should drain well, and no saucer should be placed under the pot to ensure thorough drainage. ... and shredded leaves for mulching your blueberry patch. You will get notification once new article is posted. Tip #3: Never plant just one shrub! A guide on winter mulching, including what plants to mulch, how much to apply and when to apply the mulch before the snows halt your tracks. For sandy soil, peat moss helps retain moisture and nutrients for plant roots. Where the soil is poor or marginally drained, raised beds 3–4 feet (0.9–1.2 m) wide and 8-12" high work very well for blueberries.A fail safe way to grow blueberries in almost any soil is to incorporate peat moss into the planting medium. Reed/sedge peat is brown to black in color, mucky … In fact, Canada, Finland, Ireland, and Russia are the primary sources for the commercial product, according to Marianne C. Ophardt at the Washington State University Extension. Several pounds of sulfur are needed per 1,000 square feet to lower the pH one unit. Do I … Blueberries require acidic but well-drained soil and that’s what Canadian peat provides. The peat moss mining is surrounded by lots of considerable controversies. Blueberries have shallow root systems, meaning they will dry out if a thick mulch isn’t used to protect from evaporation. Decayed pine needle duff also makes ideal mulch. ... Common materials for mulch include straw, grass clippings, river stones, pea gravel, bark chips, leaves, peat moss, seaweed, wood ashes, and sawdust. It's easier to manage a weed mat mulch when the weed mat is zippered with pins holding it in place (see picture); this way you can open the weed mat to add any needed fertilizer. There are certain groups like the International Peat Society that keep a check on peat moss. Best Blueberry Mulch. Add bark chunk mulch. The planting hole should contain about one third peat moss, one third topsoil (amended for pH if necessary), and one third sand. Homegardeners often like to use yard debris compost as a mulch/fertilizer. If it does work it is not because the peat moss acidifies the soil. While peat moss is acid, it is very expensive and when it dries out its hard for water to get through it (hard crust layer). While a little bit can be added as a mulch, it's best to avoid using a lot of this type of product when mulching blueberries. Peat moss should be mixed into soil. Among other things, they are high in antioxidants, have anti-aging activity, promote healthy urinary tracts, improve vision and help fight heart disease. As it grows, it spreads onto drier areas and turns those into bogs as well. The extremely heavy weight would bust truck axles and and make trucks overweight and not allowed to cross the border. For planting directly in the ground, work up a planting area approximately 2½ feet in diameter and 1 foot deep for each plant. Peat moss has an acidic base, usually around 3.5 to 4 pH. Five inches is even better. If mulched, rabbiteye blueberries will usually grow satisfactorily on soils with 1% organic matter, but they perform better with soils that have 2–3% organic matter. If your soil is alkaline, you’ll either need to do a LOT of soil amending, or grow you blueberries in a container. Ask Mike A Question    Mike's YBYG Archives    Find YBYG Show. We have studied various mulches and have some other specific comments/recommendations as a result. Peat moss is beneficial when added to the soil of flowerbeds before entering the growing season. It COMPLETELY stops drainage! If using a hybrid blueberry, about 4-5 feet across. Peat moss is a type of peat characterized by vegetation decay. If that’s your goal, rely on compost or other amendments to do the job. Free Shipping on Orders of $75 or more (excludes overweight shipping). Peat moss first became available to gardeners in the mid-1900s, and since then it has revolutionized the way we grow plants. Sure, peat moss is a thirsty medium, but once it’s completely dry, it takes A … The pH needs for container blueberries are the same; between 4.8 and 5.2. This will provide nutrients as well as a heavier, more wind resistant, pot. The best way is to incorporate sphagnum peat all around the blueberry plant’s base about once every year. The pH level of coconut coir is 6.0 compared to approximately 4.0 for spaghnum peat moss. Mulching Blueberry Bushes. If you think that pine needles make a more suitable mulch for blueberries, where can I purchased them in the Portland area? Keep blueberries well watered - they suffer badly if they dry out. A layer 3 to 4 inches thick is desirable and should be replenished every few years to replace that which is lost through decomposition. Please refer to the Growing Blueberries in Your Home Garden publication, EC 1304, available from OSU at: http://ir.library.oregonstate.edu/xmlui/bitstream/handle/1957/12202/ec1304.pdf;jsessionid=CB6A3EBD1A...You will note that we generally recommend Douglas fir sawdust as a mulch because it's usually readily available and it has a pH of about 4.5 (good for blueberries). For raised beds or growing blueberries in containers, a mix of half peat moss and half acid compost or soil mix should work well. In my personal experience, while some people hail peat as an excellent mulch, I’d suggest staying away from it. Soil pH can be lowered by adding elemental sulfur or peat moss to the soil. Peat moss was the most common mulch used when I was a kid back in the late seventies and eighties. Peat moss can often contain bacterial and fungal spores that can contaminate plants. However, there are other products that might be more readily available for home gardeners. Southern highbush cultivars are not recommended for soils with less than 3% organic matter unless additional organic matter is added as a soil amendment and mulches are added to the site. Peat moss does not break down quickly at all and does not force air and water ouf soil. It's very, very light. Top dressing with peat is a bad idea because wind will blow it around and rain will harden it. It is often applied with the ratio 2:1. Blueberries require full sun to produce well. It does much better as an amendment mixed into the earth. I added shredded leaves and peat moss to my boxwood-edged bed. Then backfill with a mixture that is half soil and half moistened peat. It's great mixed with soil where you need organic matter and a lower pH, but it's not an ideal mulch to put on top, especially as it doesn't last long in it's original form. As you contemplate your urban woodland garden, you realize that scattering a few blueberry (Vaccinium spp.) If you can store your peat moss on shore, you have a great advantage because you can just keep the original bag and cut an opening in the top to scoop out what you need and bring it to your boat as you need it. The whole family loves them and you can’t beat fresh berries. Remove 1/3 to 1/2 of the soil. For blueberries, which require a HIGHLY acidic soil, I first plant the things in half compost/half peat moss (a pretty good replication of their natural habitat) and then mulch them with lots more peat moss covered with some compost every season.