Blueberries are one of those super foods that have a special place at our table. We use them in all sorts of things from smoothies to muffins, and crepes. However, commercially grown berries tend to have a bad reputation as being labeled among the dirty dozen for food most saturated by pesticides.
This is one reason why we are 2 Good Farms decided to try to grow fresh blueberries, even though we have high basic soils (blueberries grow naturally in areas with high acidic soils which occur due to high amounts of rainfall). Crazy right?! We don’t think so, and here’s why:
While growing none native plants like blueberries, even a decade or two ago, would have been impossible, we have so many tools at our disposal to make these berries work here in Eastern Idaho.
First, we use grow bags so we can keep the soil pH where it needs to be. Blueberries have fairly shallow roots so they do well in containers like these.
We also use drippers in our irrigation to ensure the plants stay moist like they need to without wasting water.
One of the final things we did was to select varieties that are cold tolerant. East Idaho can get as low as -40 degrees Fahrenheit in the winter time and these berries need to handle such severe drops in temperature.
We’re only in our second year with this particular crop, so we have much to learn and figure out still. However, with all the research and experiments we’ve done, you should be able to see fresh, IDAHO grown blueberries for sale at our stand in the next 2-5 years.
Wish us luck as we continue to show blueberries CAN be grown in Eastern Idaho.
Leave a Reply