How to grow blueberries from seeds. Growing blueberries from seeds at home. Blueberry cultivation methods

08.08.2020

It is a small bush with edible blue-black berries, belongs to the Heather family. Propagated by such methods: dividing the bush, cuttings, seed method. Seed propagation is a fairly easy and common method. Its only drawback is the longer growing process.

What blueberry seeds look like

Blueberries have dark blue flesh, which can contain up to 40 small seeds (usually fewer). This is the seed to plant. They look like small bones. To obtain seed, you need to choose large varietal well-ripened berries. You can use frozen blueberries from the supermarket or purchase seeds from the store.

They need to be crushed and placed in a container with cool water. Poor quality seeds and pulp will rise to the surface. They need to be collected and water replaced. The process is repeated several times. Good quality seeds will remain at the bottom of the liquid container.

Important! Seeds taken from forest blueberries, as a rule, do not take root in summer cottages. And if they can nevertheless adapt in such a place, then they grow and develop poorly.

Then the water is drained, and the resulting seed is placed on a paper towel, evenly distributed, and dried. The planting material obtained in this way is recommended to be planted immediately after receipt and not to be stored.

The best varieties for planting

Landing dates

Before the cold period, namely in October. For this, dry seed is used.
In early spring. In this case, it should be planted with dried seeds that have gone through a stratification process.

If berries from the supermarket are used for planting, then they can simply be sealed for the winter shallowly into the soil. The likelihood of successful germination is low, but why not try it if there is planting material.

Landing instruction

Sowing seeds and growing seedlings is not difficult at home. The main thing is to create the necessary soil and moisture conditions, adhere to the recommendations of planting and care specialists.

Did you know? The Russian name for blueberries comes from the ability of its black-purple berries to color with their juice - depending on the reagents, it can stain tissues in red and blue. Used as a purple food coloring.

Seed preparation

Before planting in spring, blueberry seeds must go through a stratification process that mimics the natural wintering of seeds in nature. The procedure significantly increases the germination of the planting material and the better development of the plant in the future. For this, the seeds are placed in a container with soil at the end of autumn and transferred to a cool place (basement, refrigerator shelf).

If desired, you can plant the seeds immediately on the prepared area. If frozen blueberries are used for this, then the stratification process is considered already passed.

Did you know? For medicinal purposes, you can use not only berries, but also blueberry leaves. Its shoots are part of the collection against diabetes "Arfazetin".

Blueberries prefer acidic soils (pH 4-5), light in structure. Therefore, a nutritious soil mixture is prepared for planting. For this, peat, sand (only river sand is used) and crumbling needles are mixed in equal parts. The resulting mixture is placed in a suitable planting container. Small pots can be used.

Planting process

The seeds are placed in pots with pre-moistened prepared soil using a toothpick. You don't need to plant seeds deeply. Before that, grooves are made up to 0.7 cm. Then you need to moisten with a spray bottle. After that, the container is placed in a warm place that has good shading, since the sun's rays are undesirable.

Care before transplant

The container with the planting is covered with a film to create a greenhouse effect. Every day during moistening, the film is removed for ventilation for 10-15 minutes. The first shoots will appear in a few weeks. After their appearance, the film is removed. A spray bottle is used for watering. Moderate regular watering should be done.

Important! This plant crop loves moisture and does not tolerate dry soil. But overflows are also unacceptable.

To maintain the required acidity level, you need to irrigate at least once every 30 days with the addition of acetic or citric acid to the water. Before cooling, containers with landing are brought into a bright room, where the temperature regime is + 5 ... + 10 ° С. Can be placed on a windowsill, but make sure that there is the necessary shading. In the spring, seedlings are dived. After this procedure, the seedlings are planted in 0.5 liter pots.

When to transplant to a permanent place

Landing on a permanent place is carried out the next year, preferably in the spring (March-April). The landing site is chosen in partial shade. Disembarkation is carried out by transshipment (with a lump of earth on the roots) into prepared holes. They are dug 45 cm deep and filled with a nutritious mixture of peat and sand with the addition of decayed needles or leaves. Ordinary blueberries are planted according to the scheme 25 × 35 cm, tall - 1 × 1.5–2 m. The planting is moistened and mulched.

Post-transplant care

Blueberries are demanding on growing conditions. She needs regular moisture, acidic nutritious soil and mulching is recommended. Blueberry bushes need annual sanitary pruning.

Important! After planting with seeds, the first harvest can only be obtained 5 years after the sprouts appear.

Watering

The blueberry root system is close to the surface of the earth. It needs to be watered moderately and monitored so that there is no drying out of the soil or excessive waterlogging, stagnant water. Do not allow soil erosion during watering. This berry crop loves sprinkling in the heat. If the soil is not acidic enough, then a small amount of citric acid is added to the water for irrigation.

Fertilization

Blueberries bear fruit well with sufficient nutrients. Therefore, the plant is fed with both mineral fertilizers and organic matter. Young plants are not fed. The need for them appears after 2 years of fruiting, that is, from the 7th year of life. They introduce complex mineral fertilizers for heather and well-rotted organic matter (humus, peat crumbs, chicken droppings). Organic components are added to the soil every 3-4 years, and chemical - annually.

The first feeding is done in the spring, and the second in the summer. As a spring fertilizer, you can use "Aciplex" (10 g per 10 l). This feeding should be done 2 times with an interval of 10 days. In June, it is good to feed blueberry bushes with Piafoscan (20 g per 10 l). With a lack of acidity of the earth, it is recommended to add 50 g of sulfur powder under each bush.

Weeding and mulching

Weed grass has a depressing effect on the culture, and it is imperative to get rid of it. Due to the close location of blueberry roots to the surface, loosening and weeding is done accurately and superficially (up to 3 cm). It is better to replace these procedures with mulching. Mulch will help maintain moisture, serve as additional food for plants, prevent weeds from growing, improve soil quality, and protect roots from drying out and damage.

Mulching is best done with rotted needles and leaves, moss. For the winter, it is recommended to lay a fresh, thick layer of mulch to protect the roots from frost. This is especially true during winters with little snow. Young plantings are recommended to be covered with spruce branches on top.

Did you know? Blueberries contain antioxidants - flavonoids, anthocyanins, tannin, as well as pectins, vitamins (C, A, group B). Eating these healthy berries improves blood circulation in the retina, which may help prevent some eye diseases from occurring.

Blueberry seedlings can be grown at home. Plants are transplanted to a permanent place at the 2nd year of life and optimal conditions are created for them. Fruit bushes grown from seeds will yield crops only 5 years after germination.

Garden blueberries - berries

Many summer residents and gardeners are accustomed to picking blueberries in the forest every summer. You need to know the places, and the work will take a lot of time and effort. But you should know that this is not only a wild berry. It is easy to grow it in your own garden. Garden blueberry differs from forest blueberry and has its own characteristics.

Useful properties of blueberries

Everyone knows its benefits for vision and not only:

Blueberries contain many essential organic acids (citric, malic, lactic), which have a beneficial effect on the digestive system, help with disorders, poisoning and constipation.
Mineral salts of iron, phosphorus, manganese and potassium are indispensable for normal human life. Not only fruits are useful, but also leaves, they are often used to treat diabetes mellitus.
Vitamins of group B, C, PP and carotene increase immunity and contribute to the restoration of the retina.
Due to the large amount of antioxidants that make up the berry, the risk of cardiovascular disease is reduced.
Bactericidal properties are able to fight inflammatory processes in the kidneys and urinary tract.
Blueberry leaf tea relieves headaches and helps with colds.

Wild blueberry is a small artisanal plant widespread in central Russia. The European confectioners liked the berry very much, and when they took up its cultivation on an industrial scale, it turned out that forest blueberries were not able to grow even in ideally created conditions. That is why special garden varieties were developed by selectors.

Growing blueberries in the country: the most suitable varieties

The variety of species of this berry will allow you to choose the most suitable one for growing in the conditions of your living climate.

Caucasian blueberry

Grows mainly in mountains and coniferous forests, great for the garden. It is a bush or small tree, the height of which can reach up to 2.5 m. It has large leaves and fruits, ripens at the end of summer.

Common blueberry

It grows both near water bodies and on arid peaks. Sensitive to temperature changes. Bushes, about 30 cm high, can form whole thickets. Round or ovoid fruits reach 1 cm in diameter. This variety bears fruit in late summer - early autumn.

Oval-leaved blueberry

Named for the shape of the leaves. Grows as a shrub in coniferous or mixed forests. Requires annual pruning, as it quickly forms thickets. Fruiting in July-August.

Blueberry planting and care

In order for the fruits to be large and juicy and have no astringency in taste, they need to be provided with appropriate care.

Seat selection

Unlike forest varieties, garden blueberries love open, sunny areas and cannot tolerate shade. He loves moisture very much, but does not tolerate its stagnation, therefore, you should choose sandy soil for planting and take care of good watering. Also, blueberries require an increased acidity of the soil, the pH should be at least 3.8.

Preparing the soil for garden blueberries

Before planting, the soil should be enriched with peat. Fertilizer is introduced into the pit in an amount of 30 g / m², after mixing it with sawdust or humus from oak leaves. It is usually made in the form of a trench, 1.5 m wide and 0.5 m deep. Powdered sulfur is also added to the ground with the calculation of 200 g / m³ of earth, this will increase the acidity.

Landing

It is best to plant blueberries in the fall (October-November), but March-April is fine too. Usually they use young two-year-old bushes. The roots quickly adapt to new terrain if planted along with the remaining soil on them. A hole is made in the prepared soil, according to the size of the root, it is well straightened and covered with earth.

The distance between the bushes is from 1 to 1.5 m. It will be useful to mulch the planting site with sawdust or fallen leaves, this will ensure the preservation of moisture.

Care features

The best care would be to permanently cover the ground with sawdust, vegetable peels (potato, squash) and spruce needles. This will ensure proper hydration over the long term. If there is no suitable mulching material, take care of loosening the soil. This should be done often to a minimum depth (up to 3 cm), since the blueberry roots are located very close to the surface.

Fertilizer

Every 2 years after planting, it is necessary to apply 2-3 kg of organic fertilizers to the soil around the bush (chicken droppings are suitable), they are scattered and gently mixed with the ground using a hoe.

The first feeding is carried out in the spring. Most often, Aciplex is used in the form of a salt. A solution of 10-15 g per 10 l of water is added in portions with an interval of 10 days. The second feeding takes place in June with Piafoscan blue in the same proportions.

Blueberries are propagated by methods standard for most plants:

division of young bushes;
grafting;
growing from seeds.

How to grow blueberries from seeds: preparation

This method is quite simple and the most common. The likelihood that the seeds will germinate and the plants will develop well is the same as when buying young bushes, moreover, you do not need to spend money on seedlings. The only negative is the longer growing period.

To prepare the seeds you will need:

select large varietal berries (you need to choose ripe: sweet and soft);
knead them well and pour cold water, when the bad seeds and pulp float, they need to be removed and the procedure repeated several times;
the resulting material will be planting, place it evenly on a paper napkin and let it dry.

Blueberry growing in the garden from seed

Disembarkation procedure:

planted in late autumn in slightly frozen ground;
the seeds, along with a napkin, are placed in a pre-prepared kidney (as when planting bushes);
in spring, the bed is covered with glass or black high-density plastic wrap (up to 100 g / m²) to create a greenhouse effect;
after the emergence of sprouts, they monitor proper moisture (water is added to the greenhouse if the earth dries up), and after 3 weeks the shelter is removed;
if the planting is dense, you can plant young bushes.

Outcome

Blueberries are not only a delicious berry, but also a healthy addition to the summer diet. It is easy to grow in a summer cottage, and it is not demanding to care for.

Since the plant is winter hardy and loves shady and swampy terrain, you can easily grow it in your garden, even if your area does not suit other berries. The beneficial properties of blueberries will keep the body healthy and boost immunity.

HOW TO GROW BLUEBERRIES FROM SEEDS IN HOME CONDITIONS Blueberries are a very healthy berry, which contains a large amount of vitamins and minerals. The shrub grows mainly in coniferous forests and shady places. In order for blueberries to take root in the beds, they need to create comfortable conditions. It is not difficult to grow a berry at home, the main thing is to know how to properly plant and care for it. Bilberry breeding methods Bilberry belongs to the Heather family. It is a shrub with numerous shoots. In height, it can reach up to 80 cm. The fruits of blueberries have a black-purple flesh, inside which there are a large number of seeds. When planting blueberries in a summer cottage, you should take into account the composition of the soil and choose a suitable place. Shrub grows well on acidic soils. It is better to choose shady places for placement: along fences, next to outbuildings or under tree crowns. There are 3 ways to grow blueberries:  by cuttings  by dividing the bush  by seeds Propagation by cuttings is carried out as follows: in the summer, cut the cuttings 60 mm long. Then root it in a greenhouse and after a while plant it in a garden. The division is carried out in the fall when the mother bush grows. It should be dug up and divided into partial bushes. This is a rather painstaking procedure. It is important that about 5 intact buds remain on the separated bushes. The most common way of propagation of blueberries is by seeds. Seeds can be separated from both ripe and frozen berries. Ready-made planting material can be bought in a specialized store. Garden blueberries should be distinguished from wild ones. Garden blueberries are much higher than those that grow in the forest. Length in height can reach 1.5 m. The aroma of garden blueberries is weaker than wild ones. The garden berry does not taste bitter. Garden blueberries: propagation from seeds of ripe berries To get seeds, the berries should be mash in a glass and add a large amount of water. After the seeds float, remove the peel with pulp and drain the water. This must be done several times to keep the water clear. Dry the resulting seeds: remove from a glass and put on napkins. Fill boxes, pots or other containers with peat. Seed material can be planted with a paper layer. More useful information on our website http://vsadu.ru The first shoots will appear in a few weeks. Before the onset of cold weather, the seedlings are transferred to a warm room, where the temperature should reach 5-10 degrees. In the spring, a pick is made and the plant is grown. The seedlings are planted in the designated place the next year. You can grow blueberries in another way: in the allotted area, dig in the berries without separating the seeds. After that, spring shoots are expected. This method of reproduction is unproductive due to the heterogeneous formation of seedlings. The germination process can take up to 3 years. It is not difficult to grow blueberries from frozen berry seeds. You can buy them in the store or do it yourself. Since the berries are stored in the freezer, they do not need to be stratified. It is important that the soil environment is as close to natural as possible. For the substrate, you can use peat in combination with sand, bark, sawdust, fallen leaves. For acidification, 100 g of sulfur can be added to the peat mixture. Also, when planting, the soil is watered with not very acidified water. Add a teaspoon of citric or oxalic acid to 3 liters of water. You can use malic acid, acetic acid: for 10 liters of water, 100 ml of food acid. With a competent approach and adherence to all growing conditions, the emergence of shoots from stratified seeds can be seen in a month. After sowing the seeds, the first berries appear in the third season. Recommendations for growing blueberries 1. Bushes should be placed at a distance of one meter from each other. 2. If water constantly stagnates on the site, this indicates a high level of groundwater. It is not recommended to plant seeds in these places. 3. It is undesirable to plant blueberries with an open root system. The bush must be in a pot. After purchase, the seedling must be lowered into water for half an hour, and then planted in the ground. 4. Do not forget to mulch the soil and remove weeds. 5. When planting bushes in open ground, watering is carried out 2 times a week. For one bush you need 2 buckets of water. 6. Pruning is done in spring. If there are sick, dried-up branches, they must be removed. 7. Mineral fertilizers are applied in March or November. More useful information on our website http://vsadu.ru It is also worth noting that every 3-4 years blueberry bushes should be fed with mineral fertilizers. You can use a complex fertilizer designed for heather. Birds often love to feast on delicious ripe blueberries. To scare them away, you can use a net or Christmas tinsel. Homemade blueberries require constant attention, so after planting the seeds and the first shoots, it is important to properly care for them.

Blueberries are a delicious and very healthy berry. It has a number of medicinal properties that were known for a very long time: it promotes bowel function, prevents the development of tumors and has a good effect on vision. Blueberries are also rich in minerals: iron, magnesium, calcium, potassium, phosphorus, etc.

Reproduction of blueberries is possible by dividing the bush, cuttings or seeds. The first two methods are more painstaking, but it is not so difficult to grow blueberries from seeds at home. Let's figure out what's what.

How to grow blueberries from seeds?

The first step is to stock up on planting material. You can take seeds from ripe or frozen berries, or purchase them from the store. To get the seeds out of blueberries, mash them with a fork in a cup and add water there. Small seeds will float to the surface - they will need to be collected, rinsed several times from the pulp with clean water, and then spread out to dry.

There are several ways to plant blueberry seeds:

Plant blueberry seeds in containers filled with a natural substrate - peat mixed with sand, fallen leaves, tree bark, etc. in the spring the sprouts must be dived and sent for growing.
Dig in the whole berries, bypassing the process of separating the seeds. Seedlings usually appear in the spring, but they are likely to be patchy.
Soak seeds from frozen berries in a solution of a growth stimulant for a day, and then plant them in a school.

Note that the seeds of frozen berries do not need to be stratified, and planting material taken from ordinary fresh berries should be hardened.

Blueberry seedlings are transplanted to a permanent place only after a year, when they are sufficiently strong. And the first berries usually appear only in the third year.

As you can see, the process of growing blueberries from seeds is quite simple and affordable even for beginners in gardening at home.

Propagation of blueberries by seeds

Seed propagation of blueberries

Hello dear friends!

For horticultural purposes, blueberries can be propagated by seeds, which are separated both from ripe berries and from frozen ones present in packages on supermarket shelves. True, unlike their related cultivated forms - cranberries, blueberries, princelings or lingonberries, blueberries are still represented only by wild species, since their official selection has not been carried out. Let's talk in more detail about the propagation of blueberries by seeds.

Propagation of blueberries by seeds from ripe berries

So, in this case, the harvested crop is kneaded in a glass of water and the skin and pulp are removed: in practice, this is not difficult to do, since high-quality and healthy seeds immediately settle to the bottom. After separating the pulp, the water is carefully drained, with the help of a small spoon they are taken out of the container and laid out in narrow rows on paper napkins. The placement of small seeds on decomposing material is done for the convenience of their subsequent planting in a school, where blueberry seedlings will grow, which is difficult to carry out by direct sowing. Seed material that is dried and "stuck" to the surface is then cut into ribbons and planted directly on the paper layer, as is done with carrot or radish seeds.

Since blueberry seeds are practically not prone to storage in their pure form, but need to be stratified, the prepared material is placed immediately on the planned seedling growing area or dripped into containers with river sand and harvested until spring in a cold basement. In both cases, they will massively start growing closer to spring, having "slept" in the winter period.

You can act differently, as is often done in the seed reproduction of edible honeysuckle - just dig ripe berries into the soil and wait for spring shoots, but unlike garden culture, such reproduction of the forest "wild" is unproductive and seedlings are formed heterogeneously, stretching the process of their appearance from decaying berries up to 3 years.

Propagation of blueberries by seeds from frozen berries

When using frozen berries, the procedure for obtaining new plants is greatly simplified, since the conditions for storing blueberries in warehouses in freezers imitate natural winter conditions, which eliminates the need for their further stratification and makes it possible to operate with the timing of planting. That is, the berries are purchased directly for the spring plantings, the seeds are separated from them, they are soaked for a day in the growth stimulator "Zircon" (or similar) and then sowed in the school.

With proper observance of growing conditions, which mainly concerns the acidified soil structure and maintaining its balance, blueberry seedlings from stratified seeds appear within 18 - 30 days. The soil composition for blueberries should repeat the natural environment, since its root system is in many ways different from garden plantings and is close to fungal mycorrhiza, forming superficially and endlessly generating shoots. Therefore, in blueberry plantings, it is categorically not recommended to use active organic matter, chalk, dolomite flour and ash for fertilizing, and the oxidation of neutral soils and the creation of a comfortable environment should be carried out using mineral compositions mixed with coniferous wood waste, sphagnum and forest litter. It is advisable to introduce plant residues not only into the soil, but also to use it as a mulching layer.

Blueberries, like most of their berry counterparts from the Heather family, have their natural enemies from the fauna. The most undesirable of these are birds, which taste sweet berries with a pleasant aroma. They are scared off by pulling on a protective fabric or plastic mesh or poles with bright tinsel, New Year's "rain" or pieces of foil are put in.

How to grow blueberries from seeds at home

Everyone knows that blueberries are good for your health. Its berries are rich in vitamins and minerals. The plant prefers to grow in coniferous forests. But many gardeners want to plant this plant in their area. In order for it to grow and develop, it is necessary to create the usual conditions for it. It is very easy to grow blueberries in your garden, the main thing is to know all the intricacies of planting and caring for a plant.

Despite the fact that blueberry requires that when picking berries, a person is constantly in an inclined position, everyone wants to eat berries. Blueberries are a plant that is not afraid of frost or heat. It grows in most cases in the middle lane, but sometimes it happens to meet this plant beyond the Arctic Circle. Since she loves to live side by side with conifers, it follows from this that she loves rather humid places with high acidity of the soil.

Thus, before growing blueberries from seeds at home, in order for the plant to feel good, develop and bear fruit, it needs to create an environment similar to natural. Despite the fact that a garden type of shrub will be grown, its growth conditions should not differ in any way from the growth conditions of a wild plant. When planting blueberries, don't make the mistake of planting them in the shade of trees. This bush loves lighting, so the area where it will grow should have partial shade and a small body of water nearby. These conditions can be created artificially, for which the shrub will thank you with a generous harvest.

Blueberry in a pot

Blueberry breeding methods

Blueberry is a shrub that releases long shoots and grows up to eighty meters high. The shrub belongs to the Heather family. Berries are black with a purple tint, inside of which there are many seeds. In order to plant blueberries on your site, it is necessary, first of all, to choose the right soil and place for planting. It should be taken into account that the soil must be acidic. In addition, the plant should be grown in places where there is constant shade. These can be fences or shade from large trees with a dense spreading crown.

The shrub propagates in three ways:

In order to plant blueberries using cuttings, first of all, they must be properly prepared. To do this, cuttings are cut at least six centimeters long. They are buried in a greenhouse or box in order to form a root system. Only after that, young bilberry bushes are planted in open soil. This breeding method is only suitable for the summer season. In order to plant blueberries with cuttings, you only need to choose lignified shoots.

The cut of the cutting must be straight. In order for the moisture to evaporate less, the lower leaves are completely removed, and the upper leaves are shortened. The lower edge of the cutting should be treated with a root stimulant.

A layer of peat or peat-sludge is poured into the box. The ball must be at least six to eight centimeters long. River sand is poured on top, in a layer of two to three centimeters. The cuttings are planted in the sand, but in such a way that they do not come into contact with the peat. Otherwise, the peat layer can provoke rotting of the cuttings.

The box is covered with foil or glass. During the formation of the root system, it is necessary to monitor the condition of the soil. It should be constantly moist. For this, spraying is periodically carried out. In addition, young seedlings need ventilation.

Saplings grown from cuttings do not need to be disturbed until spring. In winter, they are covered with spruce branches, and only after the snow melts and it becomes warm, the strongest plants can be transplanted to a permanent place.

Shrub propagated by cuttings

In the autumn, blueberries can be propagated by dividing the bush. In this case, the mother bush is dug out of the ground and divided into several bushes. But at the same time, it is necessary to ensure that the kidneys are not damaged during division.

The most popular is still the seed method of reproduction. But at the same time, you can use the seeds both with fresh ripe blueberries and with frozen ones. In addition, ready-made seed can be purchased at the seed shop.

When planting blueberries in your area, you need to be able to determine where the wild blueberries are and where the garden ones are. The bushes of garden blueberries grow to a height of at least one and a half meters, while the berries do not have a bitterness, although the aroma is weak compared to wild ones.

Garden blueberries: propagation from seeds of ripe berries

In order to collect blueberry seeds at home, you need to knead a few berries in a glass and pour plenty of water. Since a blueberry seed is still heavier than water, the seeds will settle to the bottom, and the skin and pulp will float to the surface. The water must be carefully drained. The procedure is carried out several times in a row, until the water becomes completely clear. The seeds are taken out of the glass, laid out on a napkin and dried. After that, you need to fill the pots, boxes or other containers with peat and sow the seed in a thin layer.

A few weeks after sowing, the first shoots will appear. Before the very frosts, the seedlings must be taken to a warm room in which the air temperature must be maintained within the range of five to ten degrees. In the spring, the seedlings are picked, and they are grown to a certain age throughout the year. Only then can they be transferred to a permanent place.

Home grown blueberries are delicious

You can sow seeds directly in the garden, but in this case, the bed must be covered with foil or glass. It is necessary to carefully monitor the state of soil moisture and moisten it as necessary. It is also necessary to take into account the fact that seedlings grow and develop very slowly. For the whole summer, they can grow by only one centimeter. But, nevertheless, the seedlings are planted in a permanent place for the growth of blueberry bushes in the fall. With the onset of the first frost, they need to be covered with spruce branches. Indeed, despite the fact that blueberries are not afraid of severe frosts, young seedlings are rather fragile and may not survive the winter.

The seed method can be grown in another way. To do this, ripe berries are dropped in the chosen place without collecting seeds from them. In the spring you need to wait for shoots. Planting blueberries this way has little effect. In addition, seedlings are not formed in the same way. In this case, blueberries can take several years to germinate.

Planting material can also be obtained from frozen berries. The berries are frozen at home or bought in the store. You need to get seeds from the berries, treat them with Zircon solution and a growth stimulator. Only then can the seeds be sown in a prepared container.

The soil is prepared in such a way that it is the same as in the garden. To do this, take peat, add sand, tree bark, sawdust, fallen leaves to it. Since blueberries love acidic soil, add one hundred grams of sulfur to the mixture.

It should be noted! When planting seedlings in open soil, oxidation must be done. For this, the soil is watered with water with the addition of citric or oxalic acid. If these acids are not at hand, then you can use acetic or malic acid. At the same time, one hundred grams of acid is diluted with ten liters of water.

If you sow the seeds correctly and follow the step-by-step instructions, then they will sprout in a month, but it will be possible to enjoy the fruits only after three years.

Before planting blueberry seeds, you need to choose an area. In a place where water stands for a long time during rains, it is not recommended to do sowing, as this indicates that the groundwater is close to the surface.

Proper plant care is as follows:

When buying planting material, you need to remember that blueberry sprouts should be in a pot, but not with an open root system. Before planting, it is dipped in water and only after that is it planted in the ground;
Blueberry bushes should be placed at a distance of one meter from each other;
After planting, the soil is necessarily mulched, and weeds are removed from time to time;
Watering blueberries should be at least twice a week, and at least two buckets of water should be poured under one bush;
In the spring, it is necessary to do pruning, during which all diseased and dry branches are removed, then the shrub will look neat and well-groomed;
The bushes are healed once a year, they do it in spring or autumn.

Moreover, every three or four years, mineral fertilizers must be applied under the blueberry bush. To do this, you can use complex fertilizers that are used for heather plants. To scare away birds that like to feast on blueberries, you need to use a net or tinsel left after celebrating the New Year. Since garden blueberries are very demanding on growing conditions, they must be constantly looked after.

Blueberries are a very whimsical plant, but with proper care for them, the gardener will get an excellent harvest of tasty, and at the same time healthy berries. To do this, you need to make every effort and patience.

Grow blueberries from seeds at home

Growing blueberries from seeds has recently become an increasingly popular practice among gardeners who want to see homemade delicious berries on their table. If you follow the rules of growing this berry, you can enjoy its great taste, reaping a generous annual harvest.

Preparing blueberry seeds for planting. Stratification

Before planting, blueberry seeds need to be stratified, that is, to recreate the natural conditions for wintering seeds. This ensures their high germination and better growth in the future. For stratification, blueberry seeds must be placed in a container with soil in late autumn and taken to a cool basement for the whole winter, and in the city, a container with seeds can be stored in the refrigerator, in the tray in which vegetables are usually placed. You can also plant seeds directly on the site, before filling it with a suitable soil.

You need to take special care of its quality. Under natural conditions, blueberries grow on rather acidic soils, and the task of the gardener is to accurately recreate the natural conditions of berry growth.

Expert opinion. To acidify the soil, you need to use natural materials - fallen leaves, needles and sawdust of coniferous wood, moss. As a top dressing, you cannot use something that in the natural environment of blueberry growth practically does not get into the soil, for example, chalk and active organic substances.

The emergence of seedlings and care of a developing plant

If the conditions for stratification and the preparation of suitable soil have been met, and the seeds themselves are viable, the first shoots should be expected to appear about a month after the temperature is high enough for this. To protect the seeds and control moisture and temperature, blueberry crops should be covered with foil, glass or plastic in spring.

Mulching plays an important role in ensuring the normal development of plants. As a mulch, it is best to use the same materials that were introduced into the soil to acidify it, that is, needles, foliage and moss. Mulching achieves:

optimal soil moisture level;
preventing its excessive drying out;
mulch, gradually decomposing, evenly saturates the soil with useful substances and allows you to recreate the natural conditions in which wild blueberries grow.

The first wintering of young blueberry seedlings

You need to be prepared for the fact that blueberries grow very slowly, and by autumn the seedlings will be only a couple of centimeters high. In the fall, they need to be identified for a permanent place of growth. To do this, the selected area is filled with specially prepared soil and the seedlings are planted carefully so as not to damage the root system of the plant. Before the onset of cold weather, it is imperative to cover the blueberry plantation with soft spruce branches, a layer of which will not only protect the plants from the cold, but also prevent the soil from losing a lot of moisture in the conditions of little snowy winter.

Blueberry harvest

In the second and subsequent years of plant life, you need to regularly water them and renew the mulch layer, remove weeds, and apply fertilizers. The appearance of the first berries occurs 5-6 years after the sowing of blueberry seeds.

How to grow blueberries from seeds at home?

Blueberries are a very healthy berry from the heather family. The fruits contain a huge set of vitamins and minerals, which helps to increase immunity and improve vision. In nature, blueberries grow in abundance in the forests of central Russia and in cold regions. Farmers and summer residents are interested in growing blueberries from seeds at home, primarily because its fruits are tasty and healthy, and the shrub is great for decorating the site.

Blueberry is a very healthy berry from the heather family.

Blueberry from seed, cultivation

You can grow blueberries at home and it's not difficult to do this. The easiest way for a gardener to dig up and transfer a forest bush to his site. In most cases, blueberries are accepted. However, it is not always possible to plant a plant with a bush, so summer residents decide to grow it on their own from seeds collected at home.

Only mature, ripe, selected berries are suitable for growing blueberries from seeds. It is worth using fruits without flaw and damage, of the correct shape. Having chosen suitable berries, they immediately prepare pots with fertile, loose soil for planting. Blueberry seeds are sown immediately after harvest and are not recommended for long storage.

Growing blueberries from seeds at home is a rather troublesome task.

To collect blueberry seeds for planting, you need to gently knead ripe berries, pour clean water, mix. The pulp and peel will float to the surface of the container, which should be thrown away. The washing procedure is repeated several times until high-quality seeds, suitable for planting, remain at the bottom. They are collected and dried on gauze.

Video on how to grow blueberries from seeds at home:

To plant blueberry seeds at home, use pots with fertilized and damp soil. If the wet seeds have been placed on paper, they can be planted by cutting off the required amount of planting material and placed in the pot directly with the paper. Then, after sprinkling the seeds with a small layer of soil, the blueberry pots are transferred to a cool basement, where they will be stored in the soil until spring. The soil with seeds should be watered periodically with a little water so that the soil is always moist.

In the photo, blueberry seeds

According to gardeners, most seeds sprout in spring. However, this method of growing blueberries from seed is quite troublesome. Some people propagate blueberries in a different, simpler way. Ripe berries are dropped on the site and left to overwinter, waiting in the spring at this place for shoots to appear. The disadvantage of this method is that seed germination is low and the seeds germinate unevenly.

Growing blueberries from seeds at home, video:

Growing blueberries from seeds at home is a rather troublesome task. To facilitate this task, gardeners and farmers buy seeds of high-yielding blueberry varieties with large fruits, which are distinguished by excellent germination and yield a generous harvest of tasty, healthy berries on the site every year.

How to grow blueberries from seeds and other solutions to the difficult problem of growing garden berries

How to grow blueberries, from seeds or by cuttings? In this article we will give an accessible description of both methods of breeding blueberries in their summer cottage. And you will choose the most suitable one for yourself.

Blueberries and features of their cultivation

Before we start figuring out how to grow blueberries from seeds and cuttings, let's find out what kind of berry it is in general and why gardeners are so interested in it.

Wild blueberry is a small shrub that grows in the coniferous forests of Siberia, the Urals, and central Russia. This berry is extremely useful, especially for maintaining eye health. Not to mention how delicious it is.

For its delicate, soft taste, it has long been loved by both confectioners and diet food manufacturers all over the world.

European farmers took up the cultivation of blueberries on an industrial scale, and faced a problem - wild blueberries, even when creating ideal growing conditions, did not want to grow. Therefore, varieties of garden blueberries were bred.

How do blueberries multiply? If you decide to take up the cultivation of blueberries in your summer cottage, remember the following:

Do not try to bring blueberry bushes from the forest and plant. There will be little sense, but spend enough time and effort.
Reproduction of blueberries occurs by dividing adult bushes, seeds and cuttings.
For the production of our own planting material, we take only varietal berries.

For the production of our own planting material, we take only varietal berries

Technology for growing blueberries from seeds

The method is quite simple. Ripe, large berries need to be mashed and filled with cool clean water. Let our "compote" stand a little. As a result, the pulp and empty seeds will float. Drain carefully. Then we carry out this simple procedure a couple more times. The result is clean, plantable blueberry seeds.

Spread the resulting seeds on a napkin and spread evenly over it. As it dries, the seeds will stick to the paper. This makes them easier to plant, like most small seeds.

Blueberry seeds need stratification. Therefore, plant seeds in late autumn. What is called an ice crust, and immediately to the prepared bed. If you used imported frozen berries to propagate blueberries with seeds, consider that they have already been stratified for you. In this case, planting can be postponed until spring.

In the spring, the bed must be covered with foil or glass, and make sure that the soil is moist. After the emergence of seedlings, after 2-3 weeks, we remove the shelter, but continue to control the humidity level. Young seedlings grow very slowly. Over the summer, literally by a centimeter. In the fall, we transplant the finished seedlings to a permanent place. And before the onset of frost, be sure to cover it with spruce branches. With all the winter hardiness of blueberries, young seedlings still cannot overwinter without shelter. Having learned how to grow blueberries from seeds, we will analyze the second method.

In spring, the bed must be covered with foil or glass, and make sure that the soil is moist

Propagation of blueberries by cuttings

The best time for cuttings is late June - early July. Remember that lignified shoots of varietal blueberries should be used as planting material.

With a sharp, sterile knife, cut the cuttings 4-6 centimeters long. We make the cut straight. Remove the lower leaves. To reduce the evaporation of moisture, cut the remaining leaves by half. Powder the edge of the cutting with root.

At the bottom of the greenhouse or planting box, we pour peat or peat-bog soil, 6-8 centimeters. Pour washed river sand on top, 2-3 centimeters. We deepen the cuttings into the sand, but so that the edge does not reach the peat. Otherwise, rotting of the cutting may begin. Cover with glass or foil on top. Subsequent care is reduced to regular spraying. The sand should always be moist. From time to time we raise the glass for airing.

It is advisable not to disturb young seedlings until next spring. Give them the opportunity to spend the winter by covering them well with spruce branches. In the spring of next year, transfer the strongest to a permanent place.

When is the harvest expected?

Young blueberry bushes will not begin to bear fruit soon enough. If the plant is obtained from a seed, then the berries will have to wait 5-6 years. In the case of propagation of blueberries by cuttings, somewhat faster.

In any case, if you grow the seedlings yourself, choose a place and properly prepare the acidic soil, your work will be fully rewarded. And your personal blueberry plantation will annually present you with tasty and healthy berries, and, of course, will become a reason for pride.

Before we start figuring out how to grow blueberries from seeds and cuttings, let's find out what kind of berry it is in general and why gardeners are so interested in it.

Video about garden blueberries

For its delicate, soft taste, it has long been loved by both confectioners and diet food manufacturers all over the world.

European farmers took up the cultivation of blueberries in industrial volumes, and faced a problem - wild blueberries, even when creating ideal growing conditions, did not want to grow. Therefore, varieties of garden blueberries were bred.

How do blueberries multiply?If you decide to take up the cultivation of blueberries in your summer cottage, remember the following:

Do not try to bring blueberry bushes from the forest and plant. There will be little sense, but spend enough time and effort.
Reproduction of blueberries occurs by dividing adult bushes, seeds and cuttings.
For the production of our own planting material, we take only varietal berries.