Another blueberry spring

04 Wednesday May 2022

Posted by home, garden, life in blueberries, Blueberry Protection, DIY project, environment, garden, garden projects, healthy food, Spring Chores, spring garden, sustainable lifestyle

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blueberry, DIY project, for the love of blueberries, garden projects, Protection for blueberries, Spring crops

This spring I aim to streamline my blueberry strategy. Although only three O’Neil highbush reside here in my central Virginia (zone 7A) garden, they have produced dozens of pounds of blueberries over the years…much to the delight of my blueberry customers. One year each shrub yielded ten pounds, yes each! This year two women already reserved as many pounds as I can harvest.

The biggest challenge to a successful blueberry harvest is running critter interference. Birds are the least of of my my concerns, and I learned years ago NOT to use traditional bird netting. Too many bird tangles and even one stuck hummingbird. Snakes can also die a horrible death when encountering standard bird netting. My advice…NEVER USE IT!! For two years, I used eleven yards of organza, stitched together by hand, a task never to be revisited. The nosey raccoons and squirrels made quick shreds of that material. SO, this year I found on AMZN a netting that fits my needs. Arriving in a tidy box, this 33’X33′ netting had its full reveal yesterday.

Below are assembly photographs of 2022’s strategy.

Step One: 8′ plant posts will stand in 12″ PVC pipes driven 6″ into the ground.

These 8′ stakes have lasted three seasons. The PVC shafts are an addition this year to help stabilize the stakes. The nice guy at Lowe’s cut 12″ sections from a 10′ pipe, as I waited. Easy peasy.

Many thanks to the hungry bumblebees who pollinated the blossoms. Despite ten freezing nights in April, when berries reach this stage it is time to protect them from birds and nocturnal four-leggers.

PVC shafts were pounded into the ground 6″ using a rubber mallet, then the 8′ stake stands at attention without wobbling. I will spray paint these shafts to match the ground, as I think they will remain in place year round.

Finished blueberry cover. Clips were used to secure the netting to the stakes. Old window sash weights were placed on the ground to keep the netting settled during breezy conditions. Access to the “tent” is at the lower end. Quart deli containers were placed, inverted, on the top of the stakes to prevent netting snags. With the help from a dear neighbor, we hoisted the netting over the stakes in merely a few minutes! The 7mm netting aperture is high tensile strength, UV stabilized, and reusable. No critter will get caught in this!

Cozy for the time being. Fingers crossed that this system will deter damage from wildlife. The PVC ground sleeves will stabilize the upright stakes.

Over the years, I looked at so many online ideas for protecting blueberries, and by far this is the best solution…my very own design. Since these shrubs are part of the landscape, I never wanted a permanent structure erected. This variety of blueberry has glorious fall color, so when berry harvest is complete off comes the netting, and both the stakes and the netting go into storage until next season.

In the weeks ahead, I expect these nickel-sized berries to delight.

O’Neil Highbush blueberry variety is my favorite by far. Before I planted any, I visited a nearby berry farm and tasted all the varieties. Now, this large, juicy fruit greets me every day for nearly one month in June.

Finally, a thought to garden by…did you learn anything?

Postscript: The ground shafts were tested with heavy rains and wind since installation, and while the netting is holding up beautifully, the shafts and poles were bent. The poles broke off at the top of the shaft and the shaft went off center in the wet ground. I adjust when needed. The berries are huge this season and plentiful and oh! so tasty. Well worth the exercise. 😉

And so it goes…

18 Monday May 2020

Posted by home, garden, life in Back Yard Birds, blueberries, city market, DIY project, environment, garden, garden critters, garden projects, growing your own food, healthy food, Home bound, home garden, landscape design, Lifestyle, spring garden, sustainable lifestyle

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blueberry, DIY project, garden, home, home garden, life, wild birds

Spring in central Virginia continues, despite the human condition. Mother Nature always wins. She has run wild since late March delivering freezing 29F temperatures one night then 80F the next week. Wow! My poor peony crop has never seen such dramatic swings. Yet, for the past two weeks, I managed to harvest enough flowers for bouquets to sell at market. Happy customers are unaware of my road of angst traveled to get there.

slowly a peony harvest in 2020

The O’Neal blueberries are another story. The bumblebees did a splendid job of pollinating the flowers early on. P1040209 Fruit swelled on the stems, yet they too experienced the dramatic temperature swings. My three shrubs are now ten years old. How time flies. Over the years, I experimented in numerous ways on how to deter birds and one nocturnal four-legger from my cash crop.

A few years back I began experimenting with tulle, yes the stuff wedding veils are made of. Standard bird netting is evil and can snag, injure, or kill a wild bird, therefore I NEVER use it. Tulle on the other hand is soft like an angel’s kiss. Notice in this photo the Mylar strips, whirligigs, and even a fake snake on the ground. None really discouraged wildlife.

Last year I applied more tulle, the widest I could find at Joann’s. This was more effective, but made my harvesting job much more difficult, although every time I lifted the tulle, I felt like a bride. 😉 One curious raccoon would get tied up in the edges, and there would be strips of tulle around the ground next morning. NOT good.

Soon blueberry harvest...new tulle guard in place. Peonies are chin high.

2020 Improvements…Since blueberries are part of my landscape, I do not want to build a permanent structure around them. Therefore, I purchased eight eight-foot garden stakes to form a minimal frame to hold the tulle higher and wider than the shrubs. On the tops of the stakes I placed inverted, one-quart PETE containers to protect the tulle. Yesterday, I only spent about an hour installing the stakes and applying the tulle. Tentatively held in place with clothes pins, the tulle remained in place overnight and, fingers crossed, throughout the harvest weeks ahead. Notice the black-ish line on the ground along the tulle’s perimeter…that is spent coffee grounds, collected from one local coffee shop. Last year I discovered that raccoons despise the scent/texture of coffee grounds. The space left under the tulle will hopefully prevent critters from tearing it. Since I spent the part of three March days hand sewing this 11 yards of double-wide tulle, I want to see it last a few season. Yes?

What do you think of my recent solution?
Gardening is all about evolution.
And patience, and resilience.

Only the cleverest catbird or cardinal will find their way under the tulle to the berries. I don’t mind sharing a few, but since I harvested thirty pounds of berries from these three shrubs in 2019, I will not share many with wildlife.

Regular market customers are already lined up for their share of this blue superfood come June.

Now back to the peony harvest. Overcast skies this week threaten rain on partially opened buds, not quite ready for harvest. Peonies and rain are not the ideal combination for floral bouquets. A giant circus tent would be ideal for protection, but alas that will not happen. And so it goes…

I hope you and yours are well and safe. I enjoy hearing from you, so please take a moment to drop a comment.

timing is everything

29 Monday May 2017

Posted by home, garden, life in Back Yard Birds, birds, blueberry, environment, feeding wild birds, home garden, Lifestyle, spring flowers, spring garden, sustainable lifestyle, Virginia, wild birds

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blueberry, garden, home, life, spring, spring flowers, Virginia, wild birds

Peony season ended yesterday with the last stems going home with market shoppers. Over 700 stems were harvested this year, despite crazy spring temperature swings.

abundant peony harvest 2017

I thought every blueberry flower was frozen during a late March freeze and I fully expected a ruined harvest. Behold, a few weeks ago fruit formed and swelled although I rarely saw a pollinator.

So begins another harvest challenge..wild birds appear to be especially hungry this spring and despite my efforts to foil winged and four-footed marauders, I regularly notice clever catbirds, robins, and one blasted squirrel climbing under the tulle, metallic ribbon, and whirligigs. “Ha!”they say. “On berries we will gorge!”

O’Neil blueberries beginning to ripen

Despite tulle, mylar ribbon, whirligigs, and a fake snake, the wild visitors snack

This image of a resident female American Robin collecting nesting material reminds me to be thankful for my arms, hands and fingers. Robins engineer elaborate nests cemented together with mud…all carried in their mandible.

Now I will share images of what’s blooming here at Swallowtail Cottage this month.

A clever newbie to my garden nectars upside down on the Red Hot Pokers. I think it is an Northern “Baltimore” Oriole or a Rufous-sided Towhee. Can you identify?

Another newbie to my gardens…Apricot Fudge lily…much showier the second season. No scent, and oddly shaped…what do you think?

Ahh, the persnickety Foxtail lily…an underperformer added two seasons ago. Five bulbs were planted. One died this spring and only two others bloomed. Not enough bang for the buck…Does anyone know the secret to growing this beauty?

The patch of rescued iris has tripled in just three years and is awesome early on. Despite my efforts, this patch is now riddled with fungus and I am not sure if I will be forced to remove all of them. Any suggestions?

This mass of flower power is on top of my cattle panel arbor over one raised bed. I am told they are fragrant, yet being on top, they are out of whiff range. As the prolific climber continues its path over the top of the arbor, I will sniff when flowers are within range. This is a Huldine clematis planted two years ago. Second season is impressive, yes? And I read it will bloom twice per season. Yeah!

This is the cluster of flowers from one bulb found in the grocery store (set of three) called a Mediterranean Lily. All three bulbs have produced a sturdy 36″ stem every year for the past three, and these flowers last for weeks when cut. They remind me of a chandelier.

And this is the Fake Snake who scares no birds away from my blueberries…when soaked the package states it will grow to 48″. Despite heavy rains since installed, this Fake only writhes and swells in bizarre places.

Therefore my 2017 hopes of blueberry bounty are dashed…this photo was taken a few years back when times were different. Yes, timing is everything…

Here at Swallowtail Cottage, in zone 7a, the first nesting season is now complete for the Carolina chickadees, Eastern bluebirds, and Northern cardinals. The three-week old cardinal chicks have found my feeders and entertain me with their antics. Sadly, one cardinal chick appears to have wing issues end I think it cannot fly. I shall monitor the situation as it visits the feeders and will contact the Wildlife Sanctuary for advice.

I regularly chase off the Brewer’s Blackbirds, cowbirds, and jays who invade my feeders and terrorize the new resident chicks. Tufted titmice continue their quiet routines, one Ruby-throated hummer visits the feeder frequently, House and Goldfinches continue to annoy me, Carolina Wrens are scarce, Brown Thrashers are beautiful and elegant, the occasional Chipping Sparrow makes an appearance, and my beloved Red bellied woodpeckers astound and delight. I envy their ability to fly, yet rejoice in the fact that I have arms, hands and fingers…

Happy and bountiful spring to your, my followers. I always enjoy hearing from you.

Diane

PS. WordPress just informed me that this is my 200th post. Shall I continue or retire?

~ for the love of blueberries

28 Sunday Jun 2015

Posted by home, garden, life in blueberry, garden, home, jam, life, recipes, summer, the kiss system

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blueberry, garden, home, jam, life, summer, Virginia

The month of June is blueberry harvest season here in my zone 7A, central Virginia garden. Planted four years ago, the O’Neil highbush variety thrives, sans disease or insect pressure. The ongoing 2015 harvest is a banner year!

This season I decided to use tulle instead of bird netting to keep the harvest bird-safe and critter free.

This year I draped the blueberry plants in tulle and used clothespins to hold in place. Much improved method over bird netting. This idea was shared by a good garden friend. What do they remind you of? Ghosts or runaway brides?

I draped the blueberry plants in tulle and used clothespins to hold in place, a much improved method over bird netting. What do these blueberries remind you of? Ghosts or runaway brides? That was then and only lasted two seasons. The blue rug juniper was removed, as it served no purpose. Tulle would work with smaller blueberry varieties, but did not work with highbush. Below shows my final solution in 2022: I pounded 12″ PVC rods into the ground half-way, then stood 8′ garden posts into the PVC rods, then capped the posts with inverted one-quart deli containers, so the posts would not tear the netting. I then draped the large sheet of bird-safe netting over all the posts (with help), and weighted the bottom edges with old sash weights. Finally! The affordable netting came from AMZN and should last for years. Being able to enter the space for harvesting is a delight! When the month-long harvest is complete, netting is stored in the basement, and the rods are stored in the carport. Voila!

p1070850

P1070852

O'Neil blueberry variety is my favorite here in my gardens. Large, juicy fruit greets me every day for nearly one month in June.

O’Neil blueberry a highbush variety is my favorite here in my Virginia gardens. Large, juicy fruit greets me every day for nearly one month in June. In 2021 and 2022, I harvested thirty pounds of berries off these three shrubs!!

After harvesting in the early morning, I place the unwashed fruit on a sheet pan and let them rest at room temperature for twenty-four hours. Any unripened berries will continue to ripen, and of course, I can snitch a handful as I go by during the day! As the fruit ripens, I place the unwashed berries in a covered storage container in the fridge or they may be frozen directly in freezer bags.

Sunday mornings I crave a wee breakfast that is special; a meal that celebrates the end of a very long week. Here I whipped up a quick batch of popovers and served them with fresh blueberry conserve and whipped cream! Yum!

Today is a good day for blueberry jam, as the berries just keep coming…

I began by cleaning my French copper preserving pan with salt and lemon

Following a great recipe from The Blue Chair Jam Cookbook, the ingredients came together quickly

back to the kiss system…simple, pure, flavorful

as the pan’s contents bubbled, the color deepened

using the Rachel Saunders' technique of sterilizing the jars in the oven, the final jam returns to the oven for 15 minutes longer to seal ~ a huge improvement over the boiling kettle process.

using Rachel Saunders’ technique of sterilizing the jars in the oven, the final jam returns to the oven for 15 minutes longer to seal ~ a huge improvement over the boiling kettle process

projects like this are very satisfying

the little lemon that could

O’Neil blueberries beginning to ripen and keep on giving the entire month of June

with July 4th just around the corner, blueberries make a stunning dessert presence ~ simple, fresh, delicious

my collection of French copper serves me well for a lifetime

my collection of French copper serves me well for my lifetime

Blueberries are a very old fruit, and are native to the US. They are reputed to have both health and nutritional benefits, and are very easy to grow. Recipes are handed down for generations, lauding this well-loved fruit. If you don’t grow blueberries, find a local pick-your-own farm, load up the kids, and have a morning of flavorful fun.