Bluecrop
A midseason blueberry, Bluecrop is a leading commercial variety. Medium to large, open clusters of large, firm, crack resistant, light blue fruit. High quality fruit with good flavor. Bluecrop is good for fresh eating, preserves, baking and freezing. Vigorous, upright growth, with slender light red canes, it can reach 4-6 feet at maturity, but will be shorter and more compact when pot grown.
Ozarkblue
Similar in habit to Bluecrop but is later fruiting. Ozarkblue is best grown with another variety for good pollination. Bluecrop makes a good partner as the harvest season will be greatly extended.
Cultural Requirements
Blueberries prefer an acid, well drained soil. If your soil is not acid they can be successfully grown in containers using ericaceous potting compost.
- Make sure the root-ball is moist, if not, stand the pot in a bucket of water (preferably rain water) until soaked.
- Tap the plant out of the pot, and loosen some of the roots if they have wound themselves round the inside.
- Put some compost in the bottom of the container and place the plant on top ensuring that the top of the root ball is at the same level it was in the pot, but allowing an inch or two below the rim to facilitate watering. Top up with the compost, and firm gently to ensure there are no air spaces.
- Water well and if desired mulch with a layer of bark, which will help prevent moisture loss.
- Water regularly, preferably with rainwater.
- Feed occasionally during the growing season with ericaceous liquid feed.
Picking
The perfect time for picking is when your fruit is fully coloured and shiny, if the surface is dull then you have waited too long. Unfortunately not all fruit will ripen at once so you will need to go over your bushes at least 2-3 times.
Pruning
The largest fruit is borne on the thicker, more vigorous shoots. Prune in early March when the fruit buds are visible.
Young plants need little pruning in the first three years. Just remove any horizontally growing shoots, weak stems, as well as dead or diseased wood, to produce an open centred bush. Prune to an upright shoot or a fat healthy bud.
On mature plants remove thin, twiggy stems as well as any damaged or diseased shoots, or stems close to the ground. To maintain a strong productive shrub, cut back some of the older branches to the base and others to strong upright shoots.
Although these blueberries are hardy, plants in pots should be moved to a sheltered position during winter to prevent the roots from freezing. Wrapping pots in fleece or bubble-wrap will give extra protection.
