acidify soil after planting blueberries?
 

I planted 6 blueberry plants today, in a hedge along the south side
of my house. My experience with blueberries comes from planting a
couple of plants back in the middle 80's. Both died, because our
underlying bedrock is limestone, and we have a pH of around 7.5

I figured I'd get some aluminum sulphate, elemental sulphur, or
ammonium sulphate. Trouble is, none of the garden centers, big stores
or home improvement centers around here seem to carry any of these.
Many of them have bags of lime, however, which I can't figure out why
anybody around here would use. (soil is already naturally alkaline)

I've tried K-mart, Kroger, Lowe's, Home Depot, Meijer.

Can anyone recommend a chain store that carries one of these? Little
garden centers around here are no longer in business.

Thanks!

acidify soil after planting blueberries?
 

In article ,
Ohioguy wrote:

I planted 6 blueberry plants today, in a hedge along the south side
of my house. My experience with blueberries comes from planting a
couple of plants back in the middle 80's. Both died, because our
underlying bedrock is limestone, and we have a pH of around 7.5

I figured I'd get some aluminum sulphate, elemental sulphur, or
ammonium sulphate. Trouble is, none of the garden centers, big stores
or home improvement centers around here seem to carry any of these.
Many of them have bags of lime, however, which I can't figure out why
anybody around here would use. (soil is already naturally alkaline)

I've tried K-mart, Kroger, Lowe's, Home Depot, Meijer.

Can anyone recommend a chain store that carries one of these? Little
garden centers around here are no longer in business.

Thanks!

Can you ask a store to order elemental sulfur for you? The sulfur you
put on NOW, will affect next year's crop. Is there an university Ag.
extension, or master gardeners in your phone book, that you could ask
where to buy elemental sulfur? Potatoes are like blueberries in their pH
needs, and it seems most vegetables like the soil, a little on the
acidic side, so it seems like a reasonable thing for a garden center to
carry. Worse comes to worse, order it on the internet, and then keep
pushing your local gardening centers to carry it.
Try Home Despot
http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs/...Display?jspSto
reDir=hdus&catalogId=10053&productId=100606947&nav Flow=3&keyword=sulfur&l
angId=-1&searchRedirect=sulfur&storeId=10051&endecaDataBe an=com.homedepot
..sa.el.wc.integration.endeca.EndecaDataBean%405bd 411b2&ddkey=Search
They should be able to deliver it to the store.
--
- Billy
"Fascism should more properly be called corporatism because it is the
merger of state and corporate power." - Benito Mussolini.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Arn3lF5XSUg
http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/Zinn/HZinn_page.html

acidify soil after planting blueberries?
 

On Thu, 20 May 2010 19:14:20 -0700, Billy
wrote:

In article ,
Ohioguy wrote:

I planted 6 blueberry plants today, in a hedge along the south side
of my house. My experience with blueberries comes from planting a
couple of plants back in the middle 80's. Both died, because our
underlying bedrock is limestone, and we have a pH of around 7.5

I figured I'd get some aluminum sulphate, elemental sulphur, or
ammonium sulphate. Trouble is, none of the garden centers, big stores
or home improvement centers around here seem to carry any of these.
Many of them have bags of lime, however, which I can't figure out why
anybody around here would use. (soil is already naturally alkaline)

I've tried K-mart, Kroger, Lowe's, Home Depot, Meijer.

Can anyone recommend a chain store that carries one of these? Little
garden centers around here are no longer in business.

Thanks!

Can you ask a store to order elemental sulfur for you? The sulfur you
put on NOW, will affect next year's crop. Is there an university Ag.
extension, or master gardeners in your phone book, that you could ask
where to buy elemental sulfur? Potatoes are like blueberries in their pH
needs, and it seems most vegetables like the soil, a little on the
acidic side, so it seems like a reasonable thing for a garden center to
carry. Worse comes to worse, order it on the internet, and then keep
pushing your local gardening centers to carry it.
Try Home Despot
http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs/...Display?jspSto
reDir=hdus&catalogId=10053&productId=100606947&na vFlow=3&keyword=sulfur&l
angId=-1&searchRedirect=sulfur&storeId=10051&endecaDataBe an=com.homedepot
.sa.el.wc.integration.endeca.EndecaDataBean%405bd 411b2&ddkey=Search
They should be able to deliver it to the store.

Here is a link to the Ag. extension offices in the US.
http://www.csrees.usda.gov/Extension/index.html

It's a good idea to start with them. They have the best information
about your area. Looks like Ohio has an office in every county. If
there are any farms in your area, look for a farm store. The
extension agent would know if there are any.
--
USA
North Carolina Foothills
USDA Zone 7a

acidify soil after planting blueberries?
 

acidify soil after planting blueberries?
 

Of course, your post begs the question, "If you knew about the pH, then
why didn't you prepare your planting site?

A couple of reasons. One, I'm a procrastinator. I hadn't even
really decided exactly where I wanted the blueberry plants - I just knew
I wanted to try growing some again.

Second, the place I ordered them from said they stopped doing Spring
shipping in late April, then resumed in Fall. Since it was past the
middle of May, I figured they would send me the plants in the fall, and
I had plenty of time to decide where they would go.

Instead, the plants arrived on a busy day, and just before my wife
and I planned to leave for 3 days. I was able to dig the holes, place
some dehydrated plastic in, and then top dress with composted cow
manure. Now I've finally found a local place with aluminum sulfate.
Long term, I'll also apply some peat moss and elemental sulfur.

acidify soil after planting blueberries?
 

On 5/20/2010 8:49 PM, Ohioguy wrote:
I planted 6 blueberry plants today, in a hedge along the south side of
my house. My experience with blueberries comes from planting a couple
of plants back in the middle 80's. Both died, because our underlying
bedrock is limestone, and we have a pH of around 7.5

I figured I'd get some aluminum sulphate, elemental sulphur, or ammonium
sulphate. Trouble is, none of the garden centers, big stores or home
improvement centers around here seem to carry any of these. Many of them
have bags of lime, however, which I can't figure out why anybody around
here would use. (soil is already naturally alkaline)

I've tried K-mart, Kroger, Lowe's, Home Depot, Meijer.

Can anyone recommend a chain store that carries one of these? Little
garden centers around here are no longer in business.

Thanks!

Although it is not the most effective method, you can work some peat
moss into the soil as an interim measure. Here in the northern
suburbs of Chicago, we have similar issues with stores. I can still
find what I need in nearby nurseries. Have you tried those?

Sherwin

Potatoes are like blueberries in their pH needs, and it seems a lot of vegetables like the soil, a little on the acidic side, so it seems like a reasonable affair for a garden centermost to carry. Worse comes to worse, adjustment it on the internet, and again keep pushing your bounded agronomical centers to backpack it.