Hi, this is Chris from LiveDan330.com and this is the first post in a year-long series on blueberry bush care. This entire series is sponsored by a plant donation from Monrovia®. Today, I am introducing our series and our sponsor. I’ll cover what you can expect to learn about growing blueberry bushes including how to establish and caring for your new blueberry patch. Follow along with us and in a short 12-months time, you will be eating your own blueberries.
Don’t forget to stay up to date with us on Facebook, YouTube, Pinterest or Twitter. If you want to get behind the scenes with us, join us on Periscope! See other great blueberry recipes here, or for more information about blueberries, visit our mainblueberry page or learn to grow your own blueberry bushes here. Maybe you would even want this as a tailgating recipe! I bet this would make an awesome salad for the big game this weekened! Check out other tailgating recipes here.
But before that happens, there is a little bit of work to do. We will start by demonstrating how to plan and prep your blueberry garden then show the proper care and maintenance involved with blueberry bush care. Once they are establish it is easy to care for and harvest a healthy blueberry garden. Then you will be enjoying several great recipes for your harvest like blueberry pie, and your own homemade blueberry jam.
A Little Bit About Monrovia
Monrovia is a premium grower of garden plants headquartered in Azusa, California. Founded in 1926, the company started in Monrovia, California. Since then, they have built several nurseries throughout the continental US encompassing over 4,700 acres of growing space. From these nurseries, Monrovia supplies over 5000 garden centers, so there is sure to be one near you. To find your local garden center, use the Monrovia’s garden center finder on their site here.
Who is growing blueberry bushes for?
Growing blueberry bushes is for anyone who gardens and this series will teach you everything you need about blueberry bush care. But, we think this is a perfect series for people who love blueberries and want to grow them at their home. Maybe, you are like me and just enjoy a hobby that provides a ton of free food. Perhaps, you want to be more self-sustaining, or try to keep as much of what you consume local. From square foot gardeners, to foodies, to preppers; growing your own food is important. Whatever your reason is, follow us and we will teach you how to make your own blueberry patch that you can enjoy for years to come.
What You Can Expect From This Series
For this series, Monrovia gave us 15 plants in two-gallon pots; 5 Pink Icing, 5 Northland, and 5 Chandler blueberry plants. We are going to show you everything you need to know to create, care for, and enjoy a healthy blueberry patch. We will cover prepping your soil, planting, watering, pest control, caring for, harvesting, and cooking with your blueberries.
How This Series Came to Life
I grew up in the Twin Cities of Minnesota. My family owned a resort in Northern Minnesota between the Boundary Waters Canoe Area and Voyageurs National Park. It was a family tradition to pick wild berries in the summer. It is a big deal for tourism and almost everybody that has visited Northern Minnesota has done it at some point.
Here’s a couple of wild blueberry plants that inspired this series:
Blueberry picking is by far the most popular berry to pick in Northern Minnesota. It’s understandable why. The berries are a gorgeous blue color, they taste great, and are packed with nutrition. Over the years, I have tried to transplant some of the wild blueberries and put them in my gardens. But, they don’t do well. Blueberries need a much different soil structure than a typical perennial or vegetable garden to begin with, and even then, they rarely produce blueberries after being moved.
I finally realized I need to dedicate a part of my yard to growing blueberry bushes so the plants can get exactly what they need to thrive. Thankfully, Monrovia® loved the idea of a series teaching you how to build your own blueberry patch and, as Paul Harvey used to say: “Now you know the rest of the story.”
For more information about blueberry bushes, you can visit our blueberry bush page here or our main blueberry page.
Up next: Planning Your Blue Berry Garden
