Permaculture: What is the best tree to acidify the soil in order to grow blueberries?

Question

We are in England, the North East, we want to grow blueberries but our soil is too alkaline. I understand that you can create the correct conditions by planting acid producing trees?

Answer 1

I use to live in Washington state (weather very like yours) where a huge number of blueberries and raspberries are grown.

Around many of the blueberry fields they would plant rows of cedar trees. They grew fast, provided good windbreaks, and were a great companion to the blueberries.

Any evergreen tree will work however.

If you are just planning a smaller personal blueberry patch, you can do a pretty good job making the soil acidic, with just any sort of evergreen needles, coffee grounds, and citrus fruit peels.

~Garnet
Homesteading/Farming over 20 years

Answer 2

Planting trees will take a very long time to acidify the soil, and if the soil is too alkaline, they may not even grow. It is the age old question of what came first, the chicken or the egg. Is an acid producing tree there because it changed the pH or was the pH low so it would grow. In my opinion, you can decrease the pH of a soil faster by the addition of sulfur. A few pounds incorporated into the surface will react with water to form sulfuric acid.

Answer 3

certain trees are very alkaline like all species of oak and evergreens, but because of their tannic acid, nothing will grow near or even close to them. in brushy shrub type areas is where blueberries grow best or at least it seems so. If you find an area that gets a lot of sun and the soil looks poor just mix the soil with a small amount of dehydrogenated lime and mix a little of your compost with it and water it only twice a week using not much water and about every other week, spritz the plant with miracle grow. when the plant matures and it gets close to berry time, use a small amount of triple strength phosphate ,but don,t let any get on the plant itself. I can,t promise anything, but it works for me. I swear by miracle grow.

Answer 4

I had Oak trees in the front yard of a former residence. They made the soil so acidic I had to put down pelletized lime to grow grass near the trees.

Answer 5

Something you could also try is pine bark or pine straw mulch and coffee grounds and spent tea bags. Also when you're planting the bushes add a scoop of acid peat to the hole.

Kim at: http://www.peaceful-organic-planet.com/organic-gardening.html

Answer 6

all the threes that can grow on turf conditions as for example rhododendrons