Can one Grow blueberries in zone 8?

Answer 1

According to Nature Hills nursery,

http:/www.naturehills.com

Their Arlen variety is good to zone 8.

According to Gurneys seed,

http://gurneys.com

Their Ka-Bluey Variety is good to zone 8.

You really need 2 (or more) varieties for cross pollination and decent crops.

You need acidic soil. I add pine needles and wet peat moss to the soil, but you may need to also sulphur also to get it down to a pH of about 4.8. Test your soil. Do the front-end work and get the soil right before you plant.

The main struggle with growing them in that climate is that they must never go dry. You would need a drip system on a timer that watered 3 times a day. Peat moss helps also, but the peat moss must be trapped under the soil. If it is exposed on the surface, it will act as a wick and suck the moisture up and out in hot, dry weather.

Most people in the South grow Rabbiteye blueberries. Rabbiteye blueberries were selected from a wild species which is native to south Ga, north Fla, and SE AL. They generally grow well in zones 7-9. Some recommended varieties (for zone 8) include: Climax, Tiffblue, Powderblue, Brightwell, Alapaha, Ochlakonee, (sp?) Baldwin, Centurion. Just remember to plant at least two different varieties to insure good pollination. Unlike the northern highbush blueberry, the rabbiteye types don't self-pollinate.

Answer 2

no, they will explode.