I'm not Don, nor did I even notice his Blue Berry plants when I stopped by his place, but I've seen his soil.

As to his soil, all I can tell you is that it's to kill for! The man has been adding truck loads of horse manure to it for decades and it's so rich in organics, you'll find worms in every scoop of soil you pick up with your hands.

That's all I have to say for now.. ;)

If he's been dumping horse pucky on it for decades, I'm probably not going to pick any of it up in my hands. hahaha

d

Dave:

1. I'm not the only one who grows blueberries around here, but yes, I have grown them for quite a few years with pretty good success. They are one of our favorite and most versatile fruits, easy to freeze and the best pie fruit save for apricots in my view. For most of those years, I have grown northern highbush -- varieties like Blueray, Patriot, Bluecrop, and Jersey -- but lately have added rabbiteye and southern highbush types. In Iowa, you will be growing northern highbush because your winter is different from mine.

2. I was raised at Clinton in eastern Iowa, and our soil was rich and deep, but the Ph practically neutral because of large amounts of limestone in the soil. If the Ph of your soil is in the higher range, your will have to lower it to 5 or below to grow good blueberries. Blueberries need large amounts of iron, which becomes available only in soils that are acidic. The natural soil Ph here in northern Virginia is a little over 6, and I always mix in large amounts of spaghnum peat moss when planting, as well as significant handfuls of elemental sulphur to keep the Ph down. I have also used iron sulphate extensively, but can't find that any more at my local sources. After planting, I mulch the blueberries heavily every winter to provide a continuous source of humus and protect against summer dry spells, another great enemy of blueberries. Is early spring, I fertilize a little with pure ammonium sulphate, which maintains the low acidity. Nitrogen from nitrate sources should not be used on blueberries.

3. Crabjoe is right about the stable manure, which I have been hauling for many years. Just unloaded load #10 today around the blackberries and raspberries. Expect to get to about 35 loads before I quit unless the back yard becomes too wet for the pickup. After a year, you can't recognize this stuff as stable manure, since it all turns to soft black humus, and in the meantime makes a nice, moisture-conserving mulch. Stable manure is about as clean a soil amendment as you can find, and pathogen free.

4. I do grow peaches, but they are freestones and not the pickling kind. Pickles might be made from the very firm old clingstone varieties. I do make pickles though, and put up 16 quarts of old fashioned lime soak bread and butter pickles last summer, made from cukes. That's a hell of a lot of pickles, and about all we can handle in that department. Peaches go into the freezer sliced, with a little sugar for preservation, in ziplock bags. By the end of the summer the freezer is pretty full, and we try to have it cleared out by spring.

Don Yellman, Great Falls, VA

Thanks Don. Always nice to have someone who's been there give a few tips. I'm gonna print that all and keep it as my bible. Ya know, mulching with the roadapples sounds reasonable. I might just call a couple cowgirls I know and see about that.

Thanks again,
dave