Highbush Blueberry (Duke)

Traken

Shohin
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I was at Home Depot with the wife to grab some mulch, and as is the norm, I have to pick through the trees. They had a batch of highbush blueberries, and while I like blueberries, I wasn't considering one given they were all buckets with a handful of twigs poking out of them, until I saw this one.

EDIT: Sorry for the lousy pics.

IMG_1371.jpg IMG_1372.jpg IMG_1373.jpg IMG_1374.jpg IMG_1375.jpg

It's got a heck of a chunky trunk on it. The big part has to be at least 4 inches across, and if I were to dig under the soil to reveal where it connects to the other trunk, it might be over 6 inches total. Not sure, but it's pretty hefty. I got rid of the handful of suckers, but haven't touched it otherwise.

@Leo in N E Illinois, if I might pick your brain a little, being the lord of blueberries, when would you recommend doing major work? I'd normally consider fall pruning, but you'd mentioned that the flower buds are created in July, so would I be better off treating it like an azalea in that regard and doing the hard prune a couple weeks after flowering? I definitely want to do whatever will help facilitate backbudding, even if that does include abandoning the flowers for a year and pruning in the fall.

I know you've said the duke variety is very sensitive to calcium. I've got some acidic fertilizer with no calcium in it, so that should work fairly well. I think it's actually labelled blueberry fertilizer, though I've been using it for the azaleas until now.
 

sorce

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I wouldn't worry about flowers unless you are starving and have absolutely no other food source.

Thats a bitchin twinzy .

Start them branches and such.

Eat later, years later!

Sorce
 

sorce

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I'd be trying to get new branches young enough to continue this movement.Capture+_2019-05-12-07-29-47.png


Keep it curvy.

Sorce
 

Traken

Shohin
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I wouldn't worry about flowers unless you are starving and have absolutely no other food source.

Thats a bitchin twinzy .

Start them branches and such.

Eat later, years later!

Sorce

Yeah, I’m not overly concerned with fruit and flowers, but after talking with Leo, I’ll wait to do a major prune until after they fruit. Might as well get something out of it before I hack it back, and they should be ready at the beginning of July, so not a huge loss.
 

Traken

Shohin
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I'd be trying to get new branches young enough to continue this movement.View attachment 242038


Keep it curvy.

Sorce

Thanks, Sorce. I need to uncover the base a little more to see how the two trunks join up, but depending on how it looks, I might try to go with a 3-5 trunk clump, as well. My initial thought was definitely the twin trunk though.
 

Leo in N E Illinois

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Hi Jordan @Traken

Over the last 3 years I've written a lot about blueberries. Rather than retype everything I've written, I'm posting links to posts I've written in the past about blueberries. I will eventually consolidate all this into a single missive. But until then, these fragments really do cover the bulk of what I know about blueberries. So read through these, then ask questions and I will do my best to respond.

I will try to post something in resources and tutorials someday. I would like to wait until I have a decent blueberry bonsai in a pot to show as proof, but since I only got into blueberries autumn of 2015, my hands on work is still young looking. Note the dates I wrote different posts. If one contradicts the other in details, the more recent post is my more ''evolved'' thinking on the subject.

the How to Increase Soil Acidity For Blueberry is some of my ''most complete'' writing on potting media for blueberry.
https://www.bonsainut.com/threads/how-to-increase-soil-acidity-for-blueberry.37068/#post-624521

This thread I cover pruning for bonsai in detail. My soil recommendations in this thread are not as experienced (or as good) as in the above thread. Ignore the Kanuma in the mix. Peat, Bark & a small amount of Sawdust is my main recommendation post 2018. You will need to repot every 2 years if peat is in the mix. Repotting yearly is okay. I no longer bother to sift the peat.
https://www.bonsainut.com/threads/ideas-suggestions-welcome-blueberry.25620/#post-412705

another thread where I discuss blueberry pruning. A more brief summary, less wordy.
https://www.bonsainut.com/threads/m...lueberry-keep-the-daughter.32266/#post-535786

A thread with photos from the farm and my 2016 version of my blueberry sermon.
https://www.bonsainut.com/threads/blueberry-side-project.23437/#post-361244

https://www.bonsainut.com/threads/berry-bushes-as-shohin-mame.37678/#post-635499
this thread is good discussion of pH, which is much talked about with blueberries and azalea. Point of article, pH is trivial. Calcium content of water and soil is the measurement that matters.
https://www.bonsainut.com/threads/testing-soil-ph.35224/#post-590823

brief note on Humates, and Seaweed - https://www.bonsainut.com/threads/vitamin-b-1-drenches-who-does-it.34943/#post-585997

Brief snippets of blueberry knowledge here, some about environmental factors and fungus control page 1. Photos from the farm on page 2.
https://www.bonsainut.com/threads/boredom-leads-to-a-blueberry.28763/page-2#post-554005

more snippets of blueberry info, as I understood it in 2016
https://www.bonsainut.com/threads/blueberry.25150/#post-432088

autumn colors of blueberries, buried in 2 posts in middle of this lengthy thread.
https://www.bonsainut.com/threads/autumn-colours.29452

another thread with a blueberry snippet or two
https://www.bonsainut.com/threads/berry-bushes-as-shohin-mame.37678/#post-635499']https://www.bonsainut.com/threads/berry-bushes-as-shohin-mame.37678/#post-635499

Somehow I screwed up formatting the url links to the last 4 threads, you might have to copy and paste into a new tab or window to view these threads. I can't seem to fix it and the 15 minute clock is running out.
 
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