Rooting a blueberry cutting

Yorky · Posted: Sun Oct 17, 2010 4:18 pm Post subject: Rooting a blueberry cutting

Hello all,

I took some blueberry cuttings in August and they all appear to have died. I did everything 'right' according to the RHS book:

Took 4 -6 inches cuttings of soft, healthy growth in August. Trimmed off the lower leaves. Inserted the cuttings into pots of one part compost and three parts coarse sand , inserted metal hoops in to the pots, covered with a plastic bag and secured with an elastic band. They were placed in to lean-to greenhouse and received no further attention.

Does anyone know why they might have died?

Is it too late to take new cuttings? Detailed instructions on how to take blueberry cuttings would be greatly appreciated. The resulting blueberry bushes would be grown in pots.

Thanks in advance.

ian · Posted: Sun Oct 17, 2010 6:22 pm Post subject:

Did you try some with rooting hormone , sometimes this can help. You say you gave them "no further attention" from august till now , were they dry, was there any fungus on the soil any green on stems if you scratch them with your thumbnail. growing from cuttings can be tricky you should expect a 10% hit rate i would think. so lots of cuttings then!

rhubarb · Rank attained: Hazel Tree Joined: 02 Oct 2010 Posts: 7

This is not going to make me popular-but here goes!
In N.America blueberries grow like weeds. They grow like blackberries grow for us-so profilic they're practically a pest. But they don't really like conditions in N.W.Europe. Our seasons are insufficiently extreme (too mild) and our soil is the wrong ph. In N.W.E. blueberries have to be treated like princesses just to stay alive. Who cares? We have plenty of berries which grow more than readily here. Did you know that Americans have great difficulty growing gooseberries and most Americans have never even tasted one? Why struggle with blueberries when other berries are happy just to be given the chance to grow under their own efforts.

ian · Posted: Wed Dec 29, 2010 5:23 pm Post subject:

good point... when in Rome and all that...the ericaceous compost i put down in trenches (lined with corrugated cardboard) for my blueberries has dissipated and the soil has reverted to type in only three years. I am taking your advice this year and concentrating on native berries, having said that i had great success with a Japanese wineberry this year, it is three years old now.
Regards,
Ian.