How to grow Blueberry
Updated October 2026
Blueberries are native American shrubs that crop for decades once their one big need is met: acid soil, around pH 4.5 to 5.5. The trick is choosing the right type for your winters, from northern highbush and half high types in the cold North to low chill southern highbush and rabbiteye in the South. Plant at least two varieties of the same type for the best crops.
📖 Our full guide: How to Grow Blueberries in Florida
Where to plant
Choose a sunny, well drained spot with at least 18 inches (45 cm) of loose soil, away from buildings and the roots of other trees. Blueberries have fine, shallow roots and rot in wet ground, so build a raised bed of acid mix and pine bark if your soil is heavy or poorly drained. Test the soil pH first: blueberries need about 4.5 to 5.5, and rabbiteyes are happy as low as about 4.2.
Much of the West, Texas and the desert has alkaline soil and water, which rules out blueberries in the ground. There, grow them in large pots of acid mix or in raised beds filled with acid material. South Florida and the Hawaii lowlands are too warm for even low chill types, although low chill southern highbush may crop at elevation in Hawaii.
Choosing a variety
Choose the type that matches your winter chill. Most varieties need pollen from another variety of the same type to crop well: rabbiteye pollinates only rabbiteye, and southern highbush only southern highbush.
| Type | Suits | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Southern highbush (low chill) | Central Florida (UF/IFAS: Gainesville to Sebring), the Gulf Coast, Southern California | Emerald, Jewel, Windsor, Springhigh, Farthing; Misty and Sunshine Blue for California |
| Rabbiteye | North Florida and the Panhandle, the Gulf South, East Texas and the Southeast | Climax, Beckyblue, Bonita, Brightwell, Powderblue, Tifblue, Woodard |
| Northern highbush | The Northeast, Midwest, Mid-Atlantic and Pacific Northwest | Duke, Draper and Bluecrop, which ripen early and miss the worst of spotted wing drosophila |
| Half high | The Northern Plains, Upper Midwest and Alaska | Northblue, Chippewa and other University of Minnesota varieties |
UF/IFAS notes rabbiteyes are generally easier than southern highbush: more drought tolerant, more vigorous and less prone to cold damage and root rot.
How to plant
- Test the pH. If it is too high, mix garden sulfur into the soil months ahead; Michigan State advises a year before planting, as sulfur works slowly.
- Buy healthy plants about 1.5 to 2 feet (45 to 60 cm) tall that are not pot bound. Keep bare roots moist.
- Dig a hole large enough for the roots and mix in a quarter to half a cubic foot of acid sphagnum peat moss.
- Set the plant at the same depth it grew, loosening the roots of a container plant slightly. In a raised bed, set it a little lower so water flows to the roots.
- Water in well and mulch about 3 inches (8 cm) deep with pine bark or pine needles in a circle around the plant.
Watering and feeding
Shallow roots mean blueberries dry out quickly. Water little and often to keep the root zone evenly moist, especially in the first year and while the fruit swells, but never leave the roots sitting in water. Rainwater is best where tap water is alkaline, as hard water slowly raises the pH.
Feed lightly with an acid forming fertilizer made for azaleas or blueberries. Michigan State notes ammonium sulfate is the best nitrogen source when the pH is above 5, because it lowers pH as well. Too much fertilizer burns the fine roots, so follow the label and spread it widely.
Pruning and care through the year
- Pick off flowers in the first year so the plant builds roots and shoots.
- From year three or four, prune in late winter. Canes older than about six years crop poorly, so remove the two oldest each winter and keep six to ten canes of mixed ages.
- Net the bushes before the berries color, as birds take them fast.
- Pick up and remove fallen mummified berries, or bury them under 2 inches (5 cm) of fresh mulch, to cut down mummy berry disease.
- Top up the pine bark mulch every year and recheck the pH each fall.
Harvesting
Blueberries are ripe when fully blue with no red at the stem, and they do not ripen further after picking. Leave them a few days after they turn blue for the best flavor, and pick every few days through the season.
Southern highbush in Florida give the earliest blueberries in North America, from about April. Rabbiteyes follow in late spring and early summer, and northern highbush ripen in midsummer. Refrigerate berries promptly, or freeze them on trays.
Growing in pots
Pots are the easiest way to grow blueberries where the soil is alkaline. UF/IFAS notes southern highbush suit containers better than rabbiteye. Use a pot at least 16 inches (40 cm) wide with a blueberry or azalea potting mix, water with rainwater where you can, and move pots under cover on frost nights. Plant two varieties of the same type for pollination.
Companion planting
The best neighbors are plants that share the same acid soil and pine bark mulch.
Good companions
- Azalea Needs the same acid soil, mulch and watering.
- Rhododendron Another acid loving shrub that can share the bed in cooler regions.
- Strawberry A low edging for the bed; it tolerates mildly acid soil.
Pests and diseases
Birds, spotted wing drosophila and wet, alkaline soil cause most problems.
Pests to watch for
- Birds Berries taken as they color. Net the bushes early.
- Spotted wing drosophila Soft, leaking ripe berries with tiny white larvae inside, worst on late varieties. Pick often; fine insect netting keeps the flies out.
- Scale Small bumps on stems, sometimes with sticky honeydew and sooty mold.
- Thrips In Florida, flower thrips damage blooms and reduce fruit set on some southern highbush varieties.
Diseases to watch for
- Root rot Yellowing, wilting and dieback in wet, poorly drained soil, caused by Phytophthora. Plant high and do not overwater.
- Mummy berry Wilted, browned shoot tips in spring and berries that shrivel into hard, gray mummies.
- Botrytis Gray fuzzy mold on flowers and berries in wet weather.
- Rust Yellow spots with orange powdery pustules under the leaves, a problem on some southern highbush varieties such as Jewel.
Common questions
Do I need two blueberry bushes?
For good crops, yes. Most varieties need pollen from another variety of the same type: rabbiteye with rabbiteye, southern highbush with southern highbush. Bees do the work, so plant them near each other.
Why are my blueberry leaves yellow with green veins?
The soil pH is probably too high, so the plant cannot take up iron. Lower the pH with sulfur, use an acid forming fertilizer such as ammonium sulfate, mulch with pine bark and water with rainwater where tap water is hard.
Can I grow blueberries in Florida?
Yes, except in South Florida. UF/IFAS recommends rabbiteye from about Ocala northward and southern highbush between Ocala and Sebring, in acid soil or a pine bark bed, planted in winter.
Can I grow blueberries in Texas or Arizona?
Not in alkaline ground. In East Texas, rabbiteyes grow in acid soil. Elsewhere, grow them in large pots or raised beds of acid mix and water with rainwater or acidified water.
How do I prune blueberries?
Prune in late winter once bushes are three or four years old. Remove the two oldest canes each year, plus weak and damaged wood, and keep six to ten canes of different ages.
Which blueberries grow in Minnesota or Alaska?
Half high varieties from the University of Minnesota, such as Northblue and Chippewa, which are short enough to be protected by snow cover. Mulch them well for winter.
Why are my blueberries mushy with tiny worms?
Spotted wing drosophila, a small fruit fly that lays eggs in ripening berries. Pick ripe fruit every day or two, refrigerate it quickly, choose early ripening varieties and cover bushes with fine insect netting.
Sources we checked: UF/IFAS Gardening Solutions: Blueberries; University of Minnesota Extension: Growing blueberries in the home garden; Oregon State University Extension EC 1304: Growing blueberries in your home garden; University of Maine Cooperative Extension Bulletin 2253: Growing Highbush Blueberries; Michigan State University Extension: Lowering the Soil pH with Sulfur; Michigan State University Extension: Michigan Blueberry Facts, Mummy Berry; Michigan State University IPM: Spotted Wing Drosophila in Organic Berry Crops.
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