Best Blueberry Plants For Pacific Northwest

Best Blueberry Plants For Pacific Northwest

The Pacific Northwest is known for many things, but perhaps its greatest claim to fame is the wild blueberries that grow there. The region is also home to a thriving agricultural industry, which means you can find numerous varieties of blueberries available for planting at nurseries across the area. Whether you live in Seattle, Portland, or just about anywhere else between Washington’s Puget Sound and Oregon’s Columbia River, these varieties will produce the biggest and best fruit:

Northblue – Hardy and high yields.

Northblue is a blueberry plant that is hardy and disease resistant. It grows well in containers, but can also be planted in the ground for commercial growers. The plants produce large berries and are productive year after year.

Patriot – Northern hardy with large berries.

Patriot is a northern hardy blueberry with large berries. Patriot is disease-resistant, cold-hardy and a good choice for the Pacific Northwest.

Chippewa has medium to large berries that are moderately self-fertile, have a good flavor and are resistant to many diseases including leafroll virus. Chippewa is also cold hardy.

Aurora – High-yield, disease-resistant.

The Aurora is a high-yield, disease-resistant blueberry plant with good flavor. It is cold hardy and well suited to growing in the Pacific Northwest. This is a great choice for beginners because it produces a large crop of fruit, even when planted in poor soil conditions or in containers on your porch.

The Aurora also has excellent pollination characteristics, as it flowers early in the season and attracts bees from further away than other varieties do. This makes them perfect for planting alongside other varieties—you can have several types of blueberry plants in close proximity without worrying that you won’t get enough cross-pollination between them!

Chippewa – Disease-resistant; cold-hardy.

Chippewa is a medium-sized blueberry with firm dark blue fruit and a sweet, full flavor. It’s considered an early season variety that ripens in July. Chippewa is very cold-hardy, resistant to many diseases, and can be grown in the Pacific Northwest region of North America.

Blueray – Very cold-hardy and self-pollinating.

Planting

Blueberries should be planted in late spring or early summer when the soil has warmed to at least 60 degrees F. Plant 2-3 feet apart, with rows 4-6 feet apart. To determine their spacing, measure from the ground to your hand and then add another 6 inches for proper pruning.

Spread a 1-2 inch layer of organic mulch over the soil around your blueberry plants in order to conserve water, control weeds and prevent soil erosion. In addition, mulching will also keep down frost during cold winters.

When planting more than one variety together make sure that they bloom at different times so you can harvest fresh blueberries year round!

Northland – Cold hardiness; medium to large berries.

Northland is a hardy variety that produces medium to large berries. It is self-pollinating and is a good choice for the Pacific Northwest.

Aurora is also a hardy variety which produces large berries on disease resistant plants that are great for home gardens.

Legacy – Extra large fruit with good flavor.

Legacy (University of Maine) is a cross between Bluecrop and Duke bred by the University of Maine. Legacy has large, firm fruit with good flavor that ripens in mid-season (July). The berries are light blue and medium sized. This variety can be grown in USDA hardiness zones 3 through 7, making it suitable for most regions of the Pacific Northwest. In addition to being available from Stark Brothers, Burpee carries this variety as well.

There are lots of great blueberry varieties to choose from in the Pacific Northwest, but they are all not created equal.

There are lots of great blueberry varieties to choose from in the Pacific Northwest, but they are not all created equal. Some varieties are better for certain things like disease resistance or size of fruit, while others may be more flavorful and cold hardy.

The best blueberry plants in the Pacific Northwest will also be suited to your growing conditions so you don’t waste a lot of time and money on plants that won’t thrive in your climate.

Here’s what we took into consideration when choosing our favorite varieties:

We hope that this article has provided some helpful information about blueberry growing for the Pacific Northwest. There are a variety of species and cultivars available, but one thing is for sure: we all love blueberries! If you are looking for more information about varieties in your area, contact your local cooperative extension office or agricultural university. They can also give recommendations on fertilizers, irrigation systems, and optimum planting times as well.