SORRY IT’S BEEN A WHILE….Spring 2015 HIGHLIGHTS follow (in reverse order)
JULY – FIRST CROP RESULTS SO FAR (37lbs total from 40 plants)
- Expect to yield about 1 lb/plant from Bluecrop & BlueRay
- First pick was on 6/24. Four picks so far about 4-5 days apart. Last pick expected week of 7/13.
- Late variety (Aurora) not ready yet
- Bluecrop seems to have most consistently sized berries, but some Blueray berries are huge
- Net, flowering and pollination seemed to be thorough, in fact, fruit set on Blueray seemed excessive, so did some pruning early in spring
Weighing In (scale used by my grandfather at Findley Market in Cincinnati)
HELP ARRIVES!!!!!
1st BB Pie of 2015 (See Sept14 Post for the recipe)
Aurora (late variety) berries not ready yet..
Bluecrop ready to pick…
JUNE – TRYING NOT TO SHARE (with the birds!)
- Installed bird netting over 1/2 inch PVC pipe forming a 15ft perimeter semi-circle “high tunnel” over the rows
- One edge of the net is secured with landscape pins and the other with bricks so net can be removed easily for picking
- Net is secured to PVC pipe using 1/2″ Snap Clamps (4ft length cut into 1″ pieces) from Greenhouse Megastore
- Net comes 17′ wide x 500′ long supplied by Plantra (AviGard Easy Fit Square Mesh Super Premium)
- I have not seen any evidence of bird infestation (yet) at the Lazy S using this system
Bird netting stretched over 1/2 inch PVC forming “high tunnel” over rows
Clips for fastening net to PVC support pipe
MAY – LEARNING TO READ THE “TEA” LEAVES
- Recall these plants are in a “soil-less” mix of peat moss and pine soil conditioner (fines)
- This is first season to try fertigation using a water soluble fertilizer (Peter’s Acid 21-7-7) in with irrigation water
- Noticed “bronze” leaf coloration early in season indicating nitrogen deficiency
- Increased frequency of fertilizer application to once every 7-10 days to correct problem
Nitrogen Deficiency
APRIL – FROSTY (BRRRRR!) VISITS THE LAZY S
- Temp drops to 32F at the Lazy S on the morning of April 24th!
- Plants are in early bloom stage with flowers open or set to open
- Fortunately, not much wind
- Started the Frost Heads at about temp of 33-34F and ice begins to form on blossoms
- Don’t notice any frost damage a few weeks later, so looks like the Lazy S dodged a bullet from Mother Nature this year!
Temp Drops to 32F! on 4/24 (coffee is very cold)
Turned on the Frost Heads
Ice (protecting?) the blossoms
Lazy S Blueberry Ranch 