Soil requirements for blueberries cultivation

The United States is the world’s largest producer of blueberries. They are also grown in Chile, Argentina, Colombia, and British Columbia.

Blueberries have very specific soil requirements. Plants grow best in well‑drained, light, sandy loam soils with organic matter content greater than 3% and have a pH between 4.5 and 5.5.

When the pH is outside the optimum range for growing blueberry plants acidifying materials will be needed to lower soil pH. Nitrogen and ammonium sulfate fertilizers are used to increase soil acidity. Preparing a site for planting may take several years.

Avoid planting on heavy soils that drain slowly. Soils with a clay or silt content greater than 20% are not favorable for growing blueberries. Blueberry plants have a shallow root system and need good drainage to thrive. Water standing on the soil surface for more than 2 days during the growing season can damage roots. The soil water table should be at least 14 inches below the soil surface, or roots will suffocate.

The highbush blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum and Vaccinium australe) range in height from 1.5 to 7 m (5 to 23 ft) and like sunny, acidic areas with a pH between 4 and 5. These blueberries are shallow-rooted plants and are characterized by the lack of root hairs. These fines, fibrous roots require an open, porous soil for ease of growth.

Soil requirements for blueberries cultivation

Fruit of strawberries

The strawberry (Fragaria spp.) is the most popular type of berry fruit in the world. While there are more than 600 varieties of strawberries that differ in flavor, size, and texture, they all have the same characteristics heart shape, red flesh with yellow seeds piercing the surface, small, regal, leafy green caps, and stems that adorn their crown.

Strawberries are usually picked with the calyx or cap intact, since this enhances the keeping quality of the fruit. For processing, the berries are picked without the cap. The berries are placed in baskets of 1 Ib (454 g) capacity, and the baskets are placed in crates for transportation to the processing plant.

At the processing plant the berries are washed, inspected on belts to remove green and rotten specimens, and then repacked in baskets and crates for shipment as fresh products. They are then cooled to 31 to 32 degree F and should be held at this temperature until sold to the consumer. In this condition, they have a storage life of about 10 days. In some cases, strawberries for the fresh trade are precooled in refrigerated water.

They are eaten fresh, often with cream. They are also used as a filling for pastries, pies and cakes. Strawberries are an excellent source of vitamins C and K, dietary fiber, and flavonoids. They are also a very good source of manganese, panthotenic acid, vitamin B1, and iodine.
Fruit of strawberries