Name: Blueberry (Bluejay) | Berries
SKU: Blueberry (Bluejay)
Price: 11.99 USD
Availability: InStock

Blueberry (Bluejay)

1 Gallon

Bluejay holds its ripe fruit on the bush for a long time without losing quality, so you can pick it in two or three goes instead of chasing it every other day. Nothing not to like about the old generation.

Ripe fruit hangs a long time without softening or losing flavor.
Medium berries in loose clusters, resistant to cracking, mild and sweet.
Extremely vigorous and fast growing, reaching 6 ft or more.
Early to mid season, and a 1976 release that has lasted.
Self-fertile; a second blueberry variety improves size and yield.

Shop both locations freely. Picking up? Choose your location at checkout. Shipping? Stock location does not matter, we will handle it. Combined orders may take 3 to 7 days.

Total in stock: -

Arrives healthy, guaranteed. Problem within 14 days? Send a photo and we replace it or credit you.

Ships in 1 to 4 business days from our nursery in Washington state, in a 36 inch box.

Description

Bluejay was released by Michigan State University in 1976 and it belongs to the old generation of blueberries that there is simply nothing not to like about. It is extremely vigorous and fast growing, open and medium spreading, and it will reach 6 ft or more.

Its real advantage is patience. Ripe Bluejay fruit hangs on the plant for a long time without losing quality, which means you can harvest in two or three passes rather than visiting every other day through the season. The berries are medium sized, in loose easy-to-pick clusters, resistant to cracking, with a mild sweet flavor.

Overview

Ripe fruit hangs for a long time, so harvest in a few passes.
Medium, crack-resistant berries with a mild sweet flavor.
Extremely vigorous and fast growing to 6 ft or more.
A 1976 release that has outlasted most of its generation.

Growing Details

Latin Name: Vaccinium corymbosum ‘Bluejay’
Site and Soil: Full sun; acidic, well drained soil, pH 4.5 to 5.5
Hardiness: Hardy to USDA Zone 4
Rootstock: Grown from cuttings or tissue culture
Bearing Age: Fruits right away; full production in 5 to 6 years
Size at Maturity: Extremely vigorous, fast growing, 6 ft or more
Ripening Time: Early season; July into August
Pollination: Self-fertile; a second blueberry variety improves size and yield

Additional Notes

Grower’s Insight: This is the blueberry for someone who cannot pick every other day. The fruit waits for you without going soft.
Regional Insight: Blueberries crop best where winters are cold enough to meet their chill and the soil is naturally acid, which covers most of the country once the planting hole is prepared properly.
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Planting & Care

At a Glance – Bluejay Blueberry

Sun: Full sun
Soil: Acidic, well drained soil, pH 4.5 to 5.5
Water: Steady moisture all season; never let it dry out
Size: Extremely vigorous, fast growing; 6 ft or more
Pollination: Self-fertile; a second blueberry variety improves size and yield
Harvest: Early to mid summer
Hardiness: Hardy to USDA Zone 4

Planting & Care – Bluejay Blueberry

Site Selection

Full sun gives the heaviest crop and the best flavor.
Avoid low spots that hold water; the roots are shallow.

Soil Preparation

This is the work that pays: get it right once and the bush crops for decades.
Bring the pH to 4.5 to 5.5 with elemental sulfur before planting.
Work in peat moss or composted bark to open the soil and hold moisture.

Planting Instructions

Dig three times the width of the root ball and no deeper.
Mix the backfill half and half with peat or composted bark.
Tease the circling roots apart before planting.
Set it at the depth it grew, firm gently, then water thoroughly.
Mulch 3 to 4 inches deep with bark, kept off the stems.

Watering & Fertilizing

Keep the root zone evenly moist; the roots are shallow.
Feed in early spring with an acid-plant fertilizer.
Never use nitrate fertilizer or lime.

Pollination

Self-fertile, and a second variety improves size and yield.
Give it room: this one grows fast and gets big.

Pruning & Training

Prune in late winter while the bush is dormant.
Take out the oldest canes and anything weak or crossing.
Strip the first year’s flowers so it builds roots instead.

Harvest & Use

Harvest in two or three passes; the fruit holds well on the bush.
Mild and sweet fresh, and the loose clusters pick quickly.

General Tips

Refresh the acid mulch each spring; it holds the pH.
Net the bush as the fruit colors.

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