We will open to sell our Certified Organic blueberry plants on the following schedule. After November 10th, we'll determine a new schedule. We anticipate selling plants for the next two to three weeks, depending on the weather and the number of people who show up.
Tuesday, November 5: 10-4:00
Thursday, Nov.7: 10-4:00
Friday, November 8: 10-4:00
Saturday, Nov. 9: 10-4:00
Sunday, Nov. 10: Noon-4:00

Blueberry Transfer Info (new information has been added since last week):
I have secured a mini excavator for removing plants. Our varieties include Blue Crop (by far the majority; these will be dug throughout the transplanting season), Reka (the New Zealand variety), Spartan and Duke. (Rekas, Spartans, and Dukes bloom about two weeks earlier than Blue Crops.) We take cash or checks, not debit or credit cards. For pre-dug plants we need to charge $20 to cover the cost of the equipment and fuel. If you want to dig them the cost will be $10 each. Some tools are available, and your chosen plants can be carried from the field via tractor, so you don't have to haul them.
Plants will be offered regardless of weather, as they need to be transferred within the dormancy weather window, and before the ground becomes too hard. The soil is so beautiful around the plants that when you raise them from the ground nearly all the soil falls from the root structure; this means the plants will be bare root. You may take a three-to-five-gallon bucket of soil with you to seat the plants in your location.
The hole you need for transfer should be approximately 24 inches deep by 2.5 feet in diameter. You may want to add Rhododendron/azalea fertilizer (this is not certified organic) and peat moss. The plants should be three to five feet apart.

Soil Samples: You may want to have your soil analyzed to determine necessary amendments. WSU or OSU Agricultural Departments are good resources. An excellent local source for amendments is Earth CPR, located just east of Sunny Farms on Hwy. 101. Call first, as their hours vary. They are very knowledgeable and love to share their knowledge with others!

Mulch: Alder sawdust is best. Fir tends to deplete the nitrogen from the soil as it decomposes, so if you use fir you'll need to add nitrogen. We get our sawdust from Hermann Bros.; they sell large loads but may be able to accommodate smaller orders.

First two years: We recommend not letting your transferred plants ripen berries for the first 1-2 years after transplanting: when green berries appear, remove them. This allows the plant to put energy toward root development rather than berry ripening. The larger the root mass, the more berry production is to be expected. Mature fully-grown plants can each produce 20+ pounds of blueberries annually.

Water: Blueberries need lots of water: soil should be moist at least 4" down at all times. (In the wild they grow in bogs.)

Sunshine: Blueberry plants prefer full sun, or as much as you can give them.

Pruning: We suggest that you prune your newly-transferred plants ASAP; they've already been shocked by being uprooted, so best to prune now rather than re-shocking them by pruning in the winter. Then they can settle in and work on adjusting to their new environment and building root mass.
We follow three primary principles:
1. Cut off dead parts. Leave most of new growth (red canes), especially those closer to the ground. If there's a little new growth way on the end of an older cane, that branch may be struggling to produce and could be cut off, allowing stronger branches to develop their new growth;
2. Clear tangles from the center so that sunlight can reach all of the branches;
3. Shape the plants upward by removing very low or horizontal branches.
Don't worry about over-pruning. In the wild, moose, etc. chomp on them, and pruning stimulates growth.
We know that our plants are going to good homes, and we're glad that our farm will be expanded throughout Western Washington!

We'll see you in the berry field!
Blueberry Dave and Teri

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