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| Hello! I'm planning to plant some blueberries this year, and they happen to need acidic soil (ph 4). Since I have ready compost on one hand and removed a pine tree from the garden on the other, I thought, why not mixing some of the soil that sorrounded the pine tree with that compost and use that for the berries. (composting the pine tree would take too long that's why I don't consider it an option).
Now my question is, once I mix compost and soil and leave the pile alone for 3 months or so, will the ph go, as time passes, from acidic to neutral? or it will stay acidic? thanks in advance! |
Follow-Up Postings:
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- Posted by Shane_Genziuk (My Page) on Wed, Apr 13, 11 at 17:00
| Hi Carol - it has always been my experience that a compost mix will move to neutral pH naturally. You may need to introduce additional ingredients to force that shift and I'd recommend a quick look at some of the available literature. Here is a link that I got from a google search that seems comprehensive enough to get started. http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/hil/hil-8207.html Good luck! |
Here is a link that might be useful: pH article from the Ground to Ground website
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| The link below is just one of many threads on this subject, on Garden Web. Go to the top of this page, at the end of the Dark Green Block is a Light Green Block with a White Block. Type in "lower pH" & you will get all the post you can read. No one told me this works, I stumbled on to it.:-) The is a good question & a lot of gardener have ask it. This works with any subject that is on Garden Web. Good Luck:-) |
Here is a link that might be useful: Lowering pH
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| Blueberries grow best in soils with a lot of organic matter and a soil pH between 4.5 and 5.5. Compost finishes at about 7.0, neutral, and adding pine needles, oak leaves, etc. whll do little to drop the soils pH significantly enough to help. What you will need to lower your soils pH is sulfur. |
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- Posted by idaho_gardener 6a_sw_idaho (My Page) on Fri, Apr 15, 11 at 1:09
| Woof! Looks like we are all over the map with the advice on this subject. Here's my contribution to the confusion; Blueberries require a mycorrhizal relationship - the coexistence of fungi with the roots. Sulfur kills fungi. Blueberries are native to areas where the organic material in the soil is predominantly the 'browns'; organic material high in carbon, low in nitrogen. Fungi grow well in this sort of soil. I live in Idaho where the pH of my clay soil is nearly 8. I have some blueberries that are getting established. I managed to kill one of the plants, but its replacement and the three others are surviving. I killed that one with sulfur before I learned about mycorrhizal relationships. What's making my blueberries start to really grow is mulching heavily with spruce tree duff; the 'humus' and needles from under mature spruce trees. I put a 4" layer of this all around the plants and put a weed barrier over that. Now the plants have started to add new growth and I was able to eat a few berries last year. I almost forgot to mention that I also add a liquid tree fertilizer that's sold locally called 'Thrive'. It works wonder on ailing trees, and the raspberries love it, too. |
Here is a link that might be useful: Link to find the Thrive product.
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| This link takes you to the recommendations made by Michigan State University about growing blueberries. |
Here is a link that might be useful: Growing Blueberries
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| Blueberries require a mycorrhizal relationship - the coexistence of fungi with the roots. Sulfur kills fungi. From - California Agriculture 59(2):65-69. April-June 2005: "Blueberries are acid-loving plants; therefore, most California soils must be acidified for successful plant establishment. The optimum soil pH for blueberry culture is 4.0 to 5.2 (Strik et al. 1993). Soil acidification is most often achieved using sulfuric acid, which is broadcast over the surface of the soil and then flood irrigated with sufficient water to incorporate it to a depth of 12 inches. Soil sulfur can be applied but may require several months to convert to sulfate and change the soil pH. Sulfur is not as predictable as sulfuric acid for changing soil pH. Therefore, when applying sulfur, additional attention must be given to monitoring soil pH and making appropriate adjustments. Citric acid and other acidic compounds may be used to lower soil pH, but they are more costly." |
Here is a link that might be useful: UC Agriculture and Natural Resources
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- Posted by idaho_gardener 6a_sw_idaho (My Page) on Sat, Apr 16, 11 at 11:21
| It would be instructive if you do a web search (google) with the terms "mycorrhizal relationship blueberries" Many hits, and a lot of interesting reading. On the first page of links found with those search terms was a link to a discussion on these gardenweb forums (the 'botany' forum). It was one of the most interesting things I found. Regardless, I feel pretty comfortable with saying that it is best to avoid attempting to modify soil pH with sulfur due to the results sulfur has on fungi. In one of the links I found, a link about blueberry cultivation, it spoke of the benefits of woody organic material (from hardwood forests) being mixed into the top layer of soil. Although that link didn't discuss the reasons for preferring hardwood material, I'm going to guess it's because of the differences in lignin, and lignin is a food for fungi. |
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- Posted by albert_135 Sunset 2 or 3 (My Page) on Sun, Apr 17, 11 at 15:14
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- Posted by belgianpup Wa/Zone 7b (My Page) on Sun, Apr 17, 11 at 19:18
| Do you know what the pH of your soil is naturally? The average rainfall in the Netherlands seems to be about 76.5 cm (30"), which is similar to where I live in the U.S. Pacific Northwest. Areas of high rainfall tend to have acidic soils, generally speaking. (Desert have the opposite.) If you haven't checked, maybe your soil is already near what you need it to be. Sue |
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