blueberry bush

I've never had a Blueberry bush before and i've suddenly got the taste for blueberry muffins so i bought one earlier this year.I planted it in a large pot of ericacious compost...it has grown a fair bit and has lovely lush foliage but i don't know when it should flower...i'm probably being impatient but i'd like to know a bit more about it....i'm desperate for some home made muffins but i'm not paying supermarket prices for a piddleing little punnet of blueberries that would'nt fill a tooth...any advice gratefully recieved....

 

Hello lolimac.

I have 4 blueberry bushes. The information I have on them is this.

They flower early on in the year, round March April time. This depends on the type of blueberry you have. Some flower/fruit earlier in the year, some later.
Once pollinated they start producing small green balls, which are your blueberries.
You will ONLY get fruit on bushes/branches that are 2 years old.
Keep the plant well watered throughout the year especially during flowering/fruiting time.
Make sure you ONLY use rain water. If you don't have a water butt to collect rain water what I do is this.

I have 2 9lt watering cans that I fill from the tap. Then I leave outside for 2 days or longer, so that the lime evaporates from the water. This way you have water that has been outside and will NOT kill your bushes.

 

Many thanks Arcticfox,my bush must only be young as it's had no sign of flowers.It is a bit out of shape...can i prune it a bit and if so when should i do it ?..

 

You do NOT need to prune.
The only time you would need to prune is:-

1. Dead wood.
2. Deseased wood.
3. Weak growth.

Apart from that leave it alone lol. My tallest bush is coming on 1m tall :O Plenty of new growth on it.
If you are thinking about potting up, be VERY careful of the roots. Do NOT damage them. I have my bushes in a 41cm diametre pot.

 

Hello Arcticfox
this may sound like a silly question - I have a Blueberry bush ( Berkeley type), I will buy another this autumn , as I understand you need two varieties to cross pollinate for max fruit. The bush was fruiting when I bought it The berries are now changing to a purple colour . The blueberries I buy in the shops are a deep navy blue colour, nearly black. Do I wait until they reach this colour ? The reason for this is I am trying to beat the birds , I have covered the bush with 1/2" netting , but I bet they can peck through this in places .

 

Navy/black is ripe, purple will not taste as sweet and juicy.

I built a small cage over our two bushes but blackbirds still seem to find a way in so I check it two or three times a day to rescue the little blighters. Can't find how they are getting in - maybe they've got a secret tunnel!!

 

The darker the colour the better.

I have a peice of string threaded with kitchen foil in front of my bushes, this seems to be working.

 

Cheers Dave and Arcticfox - Nearly black it is then . I just need to improve my bird defences !