Black Hen comes many brands this is to show what looking for link http://www.lowes.com/pd_20017-1321-00051524602171_
You use it on anything want to grow as long not in onion family it make slick between rings.

MiracleGro for acid loving plants work nicely!

MiracleGro for acid loving plants work nicely!

Gator, your link doesn't go through to Lowes for 'Black Hen' fertilizer but if you google Lowes you can get to it. Why 'Black Hen'. Is it an acid specific fertilizer, thanks, Mrs. G

Are your blueberries in pots or in the ground?

Thanks to all for the responses.

I missed to mention it, currently all my plants are in pots. in a year or two, I plan to move few of them to the ground.

I regularly use 'Black Cow' cow manure for our trees, shrubs and vegetable garden but never used 'Black Hen', will look for it when I visit Lowes next time.

I plan to grow organically as much as possible, not sure whether MiracleGro fertilizers are organic.

Thanks

Gator, your link doesn't go through to Lowes for 'Black Hen' fertilizer but if you google Lowes you can get to it. Why 'Black Hen'. Is it an acid specific fertilizer, thanks, Mrs. G

Yes it for acid loving plants Black Hen.
The black Kow or cow is not for acid loving plants.
The Black Hen is organic its pasteurize chicken litter cooked with heat so remove bad bacterial and moisture and give pelleted finished forum works better for application than powder forum. I was involved getting certified organic at lowest level 2003 and 2004 lol. You find it under many labels and size package. You use it on non acid loving plants it works good for vegetative growth other products are needed to promote fruiting buds.

I use a product from Walmart called Expert Gardener fertilizer for Azaleas and Camelias. Costs about $3.50 for 4 pounds of 10-6-8, ammonium sulfate is the nitrogen source.

I have some friends that prefer organic (Miracle gro is just a more expensive version of the above), and the old books recommend cottonseed meal, and say that blueberry roots don't access chemical fertilizer very well. Some put sulfer down also, a chemical not considered to be a chemical?

Anyway, also wanted to mention that three of my bluberries growing in spots where I had placed my 2' X 2' X 2' compost box for kitchen scraps, are more vigorous than the ones getting just fertilizer. So the organic guys may be right.

Main issue here is keeping them watered over the hot summers.

Thanks Gator, will pick up some 'Black Hen' today! Mrs. G

The original law, passed by the US Congress, that defined Organic Agriculture, allows the use of lime, and sulfur, as permitted soil amendments. Also water, which is also a chemical. Synthetic, or manufactured fertilizers, herbicides, and insecticides are generally not permitted, under USDA Organic rules.

...currently all my plants are in pots...I plan to grow organically as much as possible, not sure whether MiracleGro fertilizers are organic."

If they were in the ground, I'd definitely recommend an organic fertilizer like cottonseed meal, alfalfa meal, etc. Since they're in pots, I'll second the recommendation for Miracle Gro's acid formulation (MirAcid). It's worked well for my potted blueberries over the last several years at 1/4 tsp per gallon of water at each watering. If you'd also like to incorporate organic fertilizers (I do), then you could add cottonseed or alfalfa meal to your potting mix or occasionally water with a liquid fish/kelp combo. Nonetheless, the MirAcid provides a steady, reliable, easily accessible nutrient source that your blueberries will appreciate.

Thanks again for all the responses.

@shazaam - If I understand you correctly, MiracleGro acid could be applied during each watering?

Thanks

If I understand you correctly, MiracleGro acid could be applied during each watering?

That's what I do. At every watering, I add 1/4 tsp of MirAcid to each gallon of water, as well as 1/8 tsp of epsom salt (for Mg) and 2 tsp of vinegar (the latter will vary based on your water source). More often than not, I also add 1/4 tsp of Dyna-Gro's Pro-TeKt per gallon of water. Finally, I add 1 tbsp of gypsum (for Ca and S) per gallon of potting mix annually (either incorporated in the mix preplant or top dressed for existing plants). If you're familiar with tapla's fertilizing regimen from the Container forum, you'll have noticed that my approach is largely derived from his methods. If you aren't and container growing is of interest to you, you'd definitely benefit from reading his Container Soils and Fertilizing Containerized Plants posts.

Thanks Shazaam for the detailed response. I'm relatively new to container gardening and this is the first year I got Blueberry. Sure, will go thru the container postings and reach out to you if I have any questions.

Glad to help -- I'm always happy to talk about blueberries. :) You might also want to look back through blueberry related threads here in the Fruit forum. There are some very knowledgeable blueberry growers who regularly participate, and I've learned a great deal from them.