Page 27 - ALG Issue 2 2022

fruit
Soft fruit to grow in acid soil
Some plotholders may have soil that is acidic enough (ericaceous) to grow the Vaccinium genus, but many gardeners will need to provide an ericaceous growing medium. If the growing medium isn’t acidic enough, the plants will fail to properly absorb nutrients and perform poorly. The choice is
more limited but there are now peat- free ericaceous composts available. Some dwarf varieties are suitable to grow in pots, but a raised bed would
be more suitable for larger varieties, reproducing the conditions in the woods and heathlands where the plants originate from.
Once you have constructed a simple raised bed at least 30cm deep, you
will need to fill it with a mix of mainly ericaceous compost but also garden- made compost, composted bark, sawdust or wood shavings, leaf mould or pine needles. It will be necessary to maintain the acidity of the raised bed (the soil below will affect the pH) by adding a regular mulch of the same materials. You are aiming to achieve a pH of 4.5 to 5.5; if it rises above this, you can apply sulphur chips in the spring. Give a high nitrogen feed in late winter. Plants in pots will need monthly feeding with an ericaceous liquid fertiliser.
The growing medium needs to be
kept moist but not waterlogged and ideally only watered with rainwater as mains water pH ranges from neutral to alkaline (hard water).
BLUEBERRY
– VACCINIUM CORYMBOSUM
Most of the cultivated forms of blueberry that are to be found in gardens today are bred from the north American blueberry. There are two distinct types to be found in cultivation, the high bush that can reach a height of 1.5metres/5ft or the shorter
Allotment and Leisure Gardener 27