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Should I move my blueberry bushes?

883 views 6 replies 4 participants last post by  geo in mi 
#1 ·
I recently bought a house that has a lot of matured plants and bushes.

One of it's features is a row of blueberry plants in front of the house, between the house and the walkway up to the porch. On either side of it are large rosebushes.

The blueberries are ripening and my mom tried to eat some of them raw and told me they were very grainy.

From what I can tell, a major cause of this is fungal problems at the root, caused by heavy over-watering during hot, humid weather. Well, wouldn't you know it, but I don't have gutters and so these poor blueberry bushes basically get gallons dumped on them from the roof, and it's Louisiana, so hot and humid is kind of a given.

Should I move them, or just leave them in place as a decorative plant?
If I moved them, would it be better to just start over or try to save these mature bushes?

I've watched a few YouTube videos and it seems like moving older plants is possible, but I would have to cut the roots and baby them a bit. And the Internet, in its wisdom, says that if the issue is fungal, it can be solved with anti-fungal sprays before next season (although this year they're just ruined).

Just not sure if that's worth the effort, or if I should just start over with new plants.
 
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#4 ·
They're definitely not happy where they are -- they are all leaning forward away from the house. They get full sun all day due to the orientation of the house, so it's almost like they're just going, "Noooooo!" to the run-off. The tilt is so bad they're actually in the walkway.

I might try to move them all, but also plant some new ones with them. Just got to figure out the best new place for them.
 
#6 ·
Oh, wow! Nice find, I didn't even realize LSU had a document like this. This goes way beyond "dig it up with a shovel, throw it in a hole." Great information in here!

From the looks of it, my poor bushes are lucky to be alive as-is. Literally everything is wrong.
 
#7 ·
Yes, very few people RTD (read the directions)when it comes to planting blueberries. They require a super-acid soil, and most places just don't have that kind of soil, without getting it amended at least a year beforehand. So many plant blueberries and then, later, try to get the soil--now underneath the plants-- down to the proper pH level by putting sulfur on the top. Doesn't work very well. As for the watering, you have control over that, and maybe you can put up gutters on that roof only, with downspouts and diverters.

geo
 
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