Grow Notes - August


For Home Orchards

Blueberries set their fruit and flower buds in the fall. Provide adequate moisture for the next two months to insure a full crop of berries next spring. Apply one or two inches of cottonseed meal or other soil acidifier.

Be sure to sample fruits at all stages of ripeness. Firm-ripe and soft-ripe fruits of the same variety often seem like two different varieties - and sometimes it's hard to pick a favorite!

Toward the end of August, take an opportune day to perform another Backyard Orchard Culture summer pruning. Prune growth that has developed since spring back to a size that is manageable for you. To control vigor, it is important to have this finished before the tree begins entering into dormancy. Every climate is different, so pruning dates will vary as cooler fall temperatures set in. Use this time to inspect the primary or scaffold branches of the tree. Visualize the branches maturing to three or four inches in diameter. Space and thin accordingly.

References:

Backyard Orchard Culture
Q&A: How do I prune my backyard fruit tree?
DWN Fruit Tube™ (videos) - search for pruning

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