North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

["Ernest Plutko" <ernestplutko@wiktel.com>]

Mix peat with your mulch or just use peat.  Don't use any additive
with iron. Iron sulfate will lower the pH for a few years but will
eventually hurt strawberries.  Don't add any other iron compounds. 
Mix peat with sand and use a lot and you will have great
strawberries.  Ernie zone 2/3  

---- Original Message ----
From: aseymour@tpg.com.au
To: nafex@lists.ibiblio.org
Subject: RE: [NAFEX] Blueberries and ph
Date: Fri, 1 Apr 2011 18:48:15 +1100

>Hi
>
>My teenage son has developed a love of growing things we can eat such
>as watermelon, sweet potatoes, bilberries, etc.  We are now about to
>buy about 15 blueberry trees (probably misty, legacy and magnolia)
>and wanted to ask people's thoughts about ph.  I know they love an
>acid soil around4.5-5.5 but I did hear that some people on this list
>had the opinion that they could grow in higher ph soils if they had
>lots of compost in the soil.  I will be planting them in two beds one
>of which is ph6 and one ph7.  There are a few azaleas and camellias
>happily growing in those beds now.  I have heard contradictory things
>about blueberry requirements.  Some times I read they like sandy,
>nutrient poor soil and at other places I have read they love lots of
>organic material/compost.  
>
>I have a couple of compost bins which have only ever had fruit and
>vegetable scraps thrown in and the bins' ph is 9 so way too high for
>the blueberries.
>
>The soil in the beds has been undisturbed for at least 30 years since
>we moved in.  
>
>I am wondering if I should put in my compost in spite of the high ph
>in the hopes that it will provide lots of organic matter and
>nutrients and that the soil will 'buffer' if back to a lower ph
>relatively quickly.  
>
>On the other hand perhaps I should keep the compost out as it will
>just increase the ph and make my blueberries either die or produce no
>fruit.  Possibly I could add lots of dried leaves to lower the
>compost ph and just use it later as a mulch.  
>
>On the 'third hand' I had read the comment I mentioned earlier that
>they can grow, and fruit well, in higher ph soils if there is lots of
>compost.  Presumably this means the iron and other nutrients are high
>enough because of the compost to counteract the high ph.
>
>I like to do everything 'organically' without additives or chemicals.
> I have read that I could just put sulphur, or sulphate of iron or
>flowers of iron or iron chelate (no idea what is the differences
>between these)  into the soil but I was desperately hoping I could
>avoid any of these and just use my soil and compost.
>
>I would really appreciate any advice.
>
>Thanks
>
>Anne
>
>
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