When do i prune blueberries

So, when winter pruning, growers should look beyond just the next summer crop and envision what wood will give them good growth — key to having flower buds and high-quality fruit the following summer. Pruning hard does reduce yield, but pruning too little reduces shoot growth and increases competition among fruit, which reduces berry size, diminishes handpicking efficiency and delays harvest.

She offers online classes in blueberry production through Oregon State University. Department of Agriculture. Growers may worry about overpruning, which can warrant expensive corrective measures, but Strik said she sees growers underprune far more often. Most of the growers who attended were from Eastern Washington. Leave thicker and healthier laterals that are between 6 inches and 18 inches long with flower buds near the end.

If a bush is stressed, or if it was insufficiently pruned the year before, prune it even harder, removing dead or diseased wood first.

Remove older, unproductive canes entirely. The Northwest growing season is too short for summer hedging. Flag a few bushes and try different severities of pruning on them, leaving some bushes as control, and take note of their growth and production the following year or years.

After first hearing her preach about aggressive pruning, he tried it on his 32 acres and thought it was too much. The next year, he finished pruning wishing he had pruned more.

Keith Oliver, a manager for Olsen Bros. Ranches, recalls the first time Strik visited his freshly pruned, Prosser-area blueberry field the first winter after it was planted in the spring of She recommended he send his crews back through the plot to reprune, removing twice as much vegetation. When blueberries are about 8 to 10 years old, they are at their productive peak— but renewal growth has reached a minimum, and production will begin to decline from year to year.

Some provision must be made to revitalize the plant to prolong its productive period. A good reference book, such as Pruning Made Easy, can answer questions and guide you through the pruning process. Pruning Blueberry Plants Pruning is an important part of proper edible plant care, but many people find the task overwhelming.

Keep these things in mind: You can have confidence in knowing that not everyone will prune the exact same way even the experts. It is best for your plant to do some pruning versus no pruning. There are several reasons to prune: maintain the size and shape of the plant, stimulate for strong growth and overall fruit quality. Training Young Plants 1 to 3 years of age If vigorous, well-rooted two-year-old plants are set, they do not need cutting back the first year except to remove fruit buds shortly after planting.

Renewal Pruning When blueberries are about 8 to 10 years old, they are at their productive peak— but renewal growth has reached a minimum, and production will begin to decline from year to year. Also chipmunks or squirrels ransacked my berries this year.

Any suggestions. We have trouble with squirrels in our berry patch, too. I have a live trap from hav-a-heart that I set to trap the squirrel and relocate.

Make sure you follow your regional laws, though. Some areas allow you to trap nuisance animals while others do not. We have productive blueberry bushes that have outgrown the netted canopy that keeps the birds out. Any guidance? How many blueberries can a robin eat in a day? They can eat a lot! I would not cut the tops off, but rather cut out the tallest branches completely by pruning them out at their base.

This should reduce the overall height of the plants and encourage new growth which you can keep shorter moving forward. You might consider building a taller canopy if you have the time and money to invest in it. We live in Vemont and although we had 60 degree days last week, we are currently enjoying about 6 inches of fresh snow. Is it too late to prune our bushes. My guess is yes but our blueberry is in a pot and we had a sudden snap of cold. It now has very few leaves. A good way to check if a branch is dead is to scrape some of the bark off of it with your thumbnail.

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Skip to primary navigation Skip to main content Skip to primary sidebar. Well-pruned blueberry bushes are healthy and productive. Reasons for pruning blueberries Pruning blueberries is an essential winter chore for several reasons. Proper pruning maintains an open growth habit, which improves air circulation, opens the center of the plant to sunlight, and reduces disease. Annual pruning maintains productivity by encouraging the growth of new fruit-producing stems. Pruning removes dead or damaged branches.

Pruning increases fruit quality because the shrub is able to put more energy into producing the fruit, not more leaves. Properly pruned blueberry bushes produce better quality fruit. When to prune blueberries As with most other fruit-producing trees and shrubs, blueberry pruning takes place in mid to late winter.

The newer branches are pliable and dark in color, while the old branches are rough-barked and lighter in color. Late winter is the best time to prune blueberries. Remember, these are very hardy shrubs that do best in cold climates. This plant is badly in need of pruning. The different types of blueberries and their pruning needs There are many different types of blueberries, including high-bush, low-bush, rabbit-eye, and lots of assorted hybrids.

Soon enough, these blueberry flowers will be open and ready to be cross-pollinated with another variety. Bumble bees are the pollinators for this job. Tips for pruning blueberries How to prune blueberries depends on whether the plant is new and relatively young or old and overgrown. Never shear back blueberries and turn them into the shape of a meatball. Their fruiting buds are located in the outermost inches of stem growth.

Shearing back the plants removes all the flower buds. Older, unpruned blueberry bushes tend to produce more leaves than berries, and any berries that are produced are small and produced only on the outermost stems.

Be sure to use clean, sharp pruning equipment. To avoid the spread of disease, disinfect all pruning equipment before moving from one bush to another. Protect your blueberry bushes from deer in the winter or they may strip all the buds off the stems.

Blueberry fruiting buds are on the outermost inches of the stems. Pruning blueberries step-by-step Step 1: Stand back and evaluate your blueberry bushes one at a time. First, prune off any dead or damaged branches.

Be sure to use a clean, sharp pair of pruners. Step 2: After any damaged stems are removed, cut out any crossed branches, particularly those that rub against each other. Be sure to remove any crossed branches as well, or those that rub against each other, cutting them all the way back to the ground. Step 3: For young blueberry bushes or those that have been properly pruned in the past: Cut one-third of the remaining branches all the way down to the ground, choosing the oldest and thickest ones for removal.

Remove one-third of the stems from each blueberry plant every year, choosing the oldest branches for removal. This encourages new, productive growth to emerge from the base. Rejuvenating old, overgrown blueberries means cutting the oldest branches all the way back down to the ground.

This initiates new shoots from the root. After pruning, blueberry bushes have an open habit and fewer old, woody stems..

Post-pruning fertilization When spring arrives, fertilize pruned blueberry bushes with an acid-specific organic granular fertilizer, such as HollyTone.

Which varieties are your favorites? Comments Hello, Thank you for this helpful summary. That is what I would suggest doing. This will force side buds to develop and branch.

Is it too late?? If the wood is two or three years old, it is suggested that a lopper or saw be used to cut through the heavier wood. CFAES provides research and related educational programs to clientele on a nondiscriminatory basis.

For more information, visit cfaesdiversity. For an accessible format of this publication, visit cfaes. Skip to main content. Agriculture and Natural Resources. Gary Gao, Ph. Why is it important to prune blueberry bushes? Figure 1. Blueberry bushes that have not been pruned regularly tend to produce fewer new shoots and small berries that are of inferior quality. What are the steps to successfully prune a blueberry bush?

Here are the steps in properly prune blueberry bushes: Visually observe the blueberry bush. Imagine what the plant should look like when pruning is completed. Look for the strongest canes with the best flower buds and save them. Remove all diseased and broken canes. Remove dead twigs.

Remove canes that are seven years old or older. Remove weak and twiggy canes canes with a lot of flower buds.