Blueberries:

                   
                 Select a sunny site with at least 6 hours of sunlight a day. Full sun would be better. You will need a well drained soil as free of weeds as is possible and a PH of 4.5-5.5.  It is a good idea to start a year ahead and begin weed control either through tilling,cover cropping, or chemical sprays. You will need to be able to water your plants so figure this into the equation. When planting straight into the field we like to dig a hole 1 1/2 to 2 feet wide and about a foot deep. We then mix half the dirt with an equal amount of peat moss and refill the hole. Plant the bushes about 1 inch lower than the nursery line.
                 The spacing of your plants will depend on soil and variety. You can plant them from 2 1/2 feet apart to 6 feet and if you are planting in rows they should be from 8-10 feet apart or maybe 12 depending on the type of equipment being used to maintain the center of the rows.
                  Once your plants are set in the ground water them in well and add 3-4 inches of hardwood mulch around the plants to help maintain soil moisture and keep the roots cooler in the summer. You will want to use aged mulch, either sawdust, wood chips, or even grass clippings.
                   After you have your plants in place you will want to add some fertilizer. Give them a little time to get established. We like to use ammonium sulfate but others like triple 19 or an azalea fertilizer. Blueberry roots are sensitive to fertilizer. It is easy to damage them by applying to much. Two ounces sprinkled around the plant in spring just before bud break and again in 6 weeks will do for the first year. With older plants we start at bud break and fertilize every 6 weeks for a total of 3 times a year. Do not fertilize any later than August to avoid frost damage to new growth. As the plants age you can increase the amounts 1-2 ounces per time for each additional year of plant growth up to 8 ounces per time per plant. If you like organic fertilizers then you can use feather meal.



Red Raspberries


                    You should lay out your rows so you will have a 2 foot space for your plants to grow into with a spacing between rows as wide as needed for you to comfortably work in between. To start with you will want to plant your plants 2 feet apart down the lengh of the row and 4 inches deep. These will fill in by the following year. You can prune the tops of the new canes to 36 inches to avoid the need for a trellis or run wire down the sides of the rows to keep the full size canes from falling over.
                    Red raspberry plants like a higher PH than blueberries. Somewhere in the 6.5 range will do fine. In early spring you can apply 2 ounces of ammonium nitrate per 5 linear feet of row if you have 2 foot wide rows. This is for the first year. Increase this to 3 ounces in year 2 and 4.5 ounces for year 3 and beyond. If you want to use 10-10-10 you will need to use 3 times the amount. If you have fall bearing plants you can do a split application in March and May.
                    After fruiting has ended you can remove all of the dead canes by cutting them off at ground level. Any damaged or weak canes should also be removed at this time. New canes should be thinned to around 4-6 inches apart. This will allow the new canes to get the light they need to grow well. If you are planting a fall bearing variety you can just mow the plants down to a height of 2 inches after fall fruiting, that is if you only want a fall season otherwise treat them like a summer variety.