Well my wife and I went to lowes tonight to pick out her first orchid for valentines day. While there she also picked out a 2 year old grape vine and a raspery plant as well I found a blue berry bush so we thought we would give all three a try.
after tonight we are not suppose to go below freezing for at least the next ten days will it be ok to plant these at this point in time or should we hold off a little longer and if so how should we store them till we plant them?
Note we picked ones that had the root balls in bags as opposed to the potted ones they where a little cheaper and the looked a whole lot healthier
Thanks for any avice you can provide
Jon and Carolyn
I would plant them as soon as the weather permits J&C.
Root balls can dry out very quickly and then the plants dessicate rapidly.
If you just can't then heal them into the ground in a sheltered part of the garden until you can plant.
I always go for lifted plants as appossed to pot ones. As you say they are cheaper and often are healthier plants.
As regards the blueberry....don't forget that it needs a very acid soil. 4.5 Ph or as near to that as you can get.
Root balls can dry out very quickly and then the plants dessicate rapidly.
If you just can't then heal them into the ground in a sheltered part of the garden until you can plant.
I always go for lifted plants as appossed to pot ones. As you say they are cheaper and often are healthier plants.
As regards the blueberry....don't forget that it needs a very acid soil. 4.5 Ph or as near to that as you can get.
I will get them in the ground later today if it has thawed enough yet.
Otherwise tommorow.
I was not aware of the ph requirement for the blue berries
The soil we have tested in the garden area has been pretty much neutral so what would you recomend in the area where we plant the blue berries to drop the ph?
Thanks
Jon
Otherwise tommorow.
I was not aware of the ph requirement for the blue berries
The soil we have tested in the garden area has been pretty much neutral so what would you recomend in the area where we plant the blue berries to drop the ph?
Thanks
Jon
Hi Jon.
Re your soil for the Blueberries.
One of the quickest ways of getting the Ph down is to incorperate a large amount of peat into the soil that you are planting into.
Then if you can get it , mulch the plant with the soil from under any pine trees. ( include the pine needles ).
Shredded pine bark will help do the job too....if you have a friendly saw-mill nearby.
Re your soil for the Blueberries.
One of the quickest ways of getting the Ph down is to incorperate a large amount of peat into the soil that you are planting into.
Then if you can get it , mulch the plant with the soil from under any pine trees. ( include the pine needles ).
Shredded pine bark will help do the job too....if you have a friendly saw-mill nearby.
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critterfeeder
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It is nice to see that you and your sweetheart have a family project involving planting and growing fruit. As most here, I have been enticed by the big box store attractively- packaged fruit offerings...and I also bought/planted/grew/watched it die/dug it up/wondered why/wanted to quit.However, by getting to know other local growers, learning how they learned to succeed, and follow their steps, I have a lot more winners growing in the yard....as well as fewer dig-up-another-dud episodes.Your County Extension agent may have free literature or other fruit- growing help. Local independent nurseries and pick-your-own-fruit orchards may be places to learn extremely important info on WHICH VARIETIES PRODUCE GREAT FRUIT THERE. A concern is whether the purchased plants have a history of 'Being all they they can be' producing great fruit in your area.......or if those particular varieties would be best off in another part of the country with different climate, etc. I hope that you, yours, and your plants have a great project together.