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Best Blueberry Variety?

Jason 3Jason 3 Posts: 5
in Fruit & veg
For the UK to grow in pots for the largest crops? I am not actually too bothered about taste! There are so many varieties I am not sure what to choose from e.g. self fertile or cross pollination. I live in Suffolk. Hombase to some good 50cm or 65cm pots BTW! Cheers.
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  • Stacey DochertyStacey Docherty Posts: 1,759
    I have golden traube which is delicious and doing well
  • LynLyn Posts: 21,373

    I have Top Hat, I cant compare them to any others as these I the first ones I bought, and they were only 1.99 per plant from Parkers.

    I have just bought another from Lidls, not a clue what variety.

    I bought 2 the same thinking thats what you needed for pollination, then found out it should be two different varieties, but they have been loaded with fruit, still more to come, and the leaves now are turning a gorgeous red, so worth it just for the plant.

    They need to go in ericaceous compost with the occasional feed, but mine have just sat there producing with no special care.

    Gardening on the wild, windy west side of Dartmoor. 

  • David Lewis4David Lewis4 Posts: 30

    Earliblue I found bland.

    Herbert slightly better but missing something

    Bluecrop large berries and sweet

    Pink Lemonade. cannot comment yet as recently bought

    My favorite two are Elizabeth and Darrow. Very large berries and very delicious.

     

  • MrsT 12MrsT 12 Posts: 77

    I bought the Blueberry Collection from yougarden.com in January this year, they include Northland, Bluecrop and Jersey. Potted them each in their own big pot with ericaceous soil, in sunny spot and have watered them only in rainwater from my water butts. So far just leaves, not one bud or berry at all. I must be doing something wrong.

    Wish I could recommend them, sorry!

    I wonder if someone could tell me what position blueberries need to be in. Full sun, partial shade??

  • LiriodendronLiriodendron Posts: 7,947

    I grow Earliblue and Northland.  Earliblue is a heavy cropper, but I agree with David Lewis, it's bland.  Northland is specially bred for cold tolerance and bears rather smaller berries, but their flavour is much more like a wild bilberry - sharp/sweet and tangy.  Crops over a long period too.  Maybe not so good for Jason because the crop is smaller - though why anyone should want to grow blueberries but not care what they taste like is a bit of a mystery...  image  ...sorry, Jason!

    Mrs T, my blueberries are on a NE slope in acid soil, sunny in summer but totally shaded in winter.  They only had a couple of berries on in their first year.  If yours are small bushes they may take a little while, but it sounds as if you're doing absolutely everything right!  Hopefully next year you'll get a crop - you might need to net them against birds or squirrels though.  image

    "The one who plants trees, knowing that he will never sit in their shade, has at least started to understand the meaning of life."  Rabindranath Tagore
  • MrsT 12MrsT 12 Posts: 77

    Thanks Liriodendron, I will keep persevering and hope next year I see a crop of some sort. I bought netting in preparation earlier this year, nevermind! 

  • David Lewis4David Lewis4 Posts: 30

    Mrs T. normally they flower the second year!

    Any idea how old they were? Any woody growth when you had them and have they grown much new growth this year

  • MrsT 12MrsT 12 Posts: 77

    Hi David, they were small plants which were woody when I received them, not many leaves. Not sure how old they were I am afraid. Throughout the past few months the new leafy growth has been approx 7 inches, and then a few old leaves have disappeared! 

  • David Lewis4David Lewis4 Posts: 30

    I'm assuming they were 2 yr old. Was wondering if they were trying to fob you off with just a 1 yr old plant. Problem is the 9cm pot restricts the growth and they become difficult to grow new thick branches from the stem.

    I bought 10 from scotsplantdirect. 7 growing great, out the other three, pretty small and leggy but one has grown a new thick stem that have grown 3 foot this year, one looks like someone sat on it and no idea whats happening with the last one, hardly any new growth. All had flowers but barely two or three, no worries there with yours.

    Feed with eracious feed in Spring and after harvest, they have another spurt of growth after harvest.(tho you don't know when harvest is as you don't have flowers, you can do it with the Bluecrop, not sure with the other two).

    I would normally recommend to nip the tip of the new growth to encourage new branches, but with only 7 inches grown I don't really know.

    Any chance of uploading a pic up?

     

     

  • MrsT 12MrsT 12 Posts: 77

    Thanks David for your help, I will try and get photo's uploaded today, have been trying but the system is not having any of it at the moment! 

    Sorry not to come back to you earlier, gardening all day yesterday and asleep by 9pm!

    Did notice yesterday that the Jersey has suddenly developed three tiny little white buds on the new growth - not much, but a start. I should of mentioned too, that about a month ago I did chop a third off this years new growth. I was instructed to by the local garden center, not sure if that was right or not, but it did result in a sudden growth spurt!

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