In these days of refrigerated storage and quick transport all over the globe we can enjoy a huge variety of fruits at any time of the year from the grocery store.  It’s February and you have a craving for nectarines?  No problem.  Tomatoes, grapes, strawberries, available any time you want them.  The only drawback is that many times these fruits from far away tend to lack one important element-taste.

Some fruits are worth having only if they’re picked fresh.  When it comes to tree fruits we don’t know how lucky we are in the Okanagan.  What about blueberries?  Too cold, too dry, soils too alkaline, you might think.  Think again, we can grow blueberries in the valley and the extra effort required to be successful is well worth it when you bite into that first spoonful of fresh picked berries covered with cream.

Let’s look at the first negative.  There are blueberry varieties which will tolerate temperatures as low as -40 deg. C.  Many of these varieties originated from research programs at the University of Minnesota, famous for its development of cold hardy fruits and ornamentals like the Northern Lights azaleas.  Not only are they cold hardy and productive, they also make fine-looking shrubs with a compact, tidy growth habit and outstanding bright red fall colour.

Too dry?  Well, we certainly don’t have the rainfall that areas like Richmond and Abbotsford have.  But it is possible to overcome this lack of rainfall with smart watering techniques, enriched soils and mulch.
Soaker hoses are ideal for the blueberry patch, as they help to keep the ground moist without using much water.  Mulch is an absolute necessity for cutting down on water loss through evaporation.  Use shredded bark, leaves, pine needles or grass clippings.  Pine needles work well because they are acidic, which brings us to our next concern.

If you have ever visited a blueberry farm on the coast or in the Fraser Valley you will realize that growing conditions there are quite different than your garden here in the Okanagan.  Blueberries need an acid soil with a pH level between 4.5 and 5.5.  Our soils are, of course, mostly alkaline, with pH readings over 7 and often much higher.

The solution is to plant your blueberries with a healthy amount of peat.  A one to one ratio of peat and soil will provide the acidic environment the plants need, but test the soil annually to make sure that the soil pH remains in the proper range.  If you find it rising use elemental sulfur or aluminum sulfate to bring it down again.  If the soil is too alkaline the plants will begin to look stunted and the leaves will turn yellow or even red.
Use a fertilizer designed for acid-loving plants, like Miracid.  If you are finding that the birds are intensely interested in your crop too, cover the plants with mesh netting, or use owl decoys or “scare eyes” to scare them away.

Truthfully, blueberries are not as easy to grow in the Okanagan as most of the other berry crops.  With some modifications to their environment it can still be done with great success, and the fresh berries are well worth the effort.