I think I'm in the same zone as the original poster. I bought a pre-packaged Northern Highbush variety pack as bareroot 2 years ago (this will be their 3rd year in the ground). I want to say it was Jersey, Duke, and Patriot -but I'm not certain. They produce berries, but not enough for us and the birds, and the birds have been faster. We did try netting, but that isn't very attractive for edible landscape. I took down the netting because the birds and a rabbit got trapped and died, and I didn't want the berries bad enough to kill off the pests. I lost one bush last year (not sure which variety), the remaining two are still a bit scraggly, but I think that is at least partly due to my inexperience and errors. In my area they do lose all their leaves, but the stems are an attractive red in winter. Right now they still aren't much to look at because they are rather sparse, not dense. I'm hoping they fill out with maturity. Mine are planted on a hillside, slightly downhill of my vegetable garden so I can keep the soil more acidic. The hillside gets great sun, and drainage is pretty good, but it is also exposed to wind. I'm not sure if our excessively wet year last year hindered or helped them, it was on the cooler side too - but the bushes don't seem to like the excessive heat and humidity we usually get here either. I did order three new bareroot plants to fill in my blueberry row: Berkley, Blueray, and Brigitta - not quite sure what to expect. One day I hope to have more berries than the birds will eat, but I suspect more birds will just migrate to my yard. I guess after reading the other responses, I hope the plant I lost was the Jersey.

Brandon, before I invest time in trying to find the bits and pieces of information I've picked up over the years, such as that peaches have been shown to increase in actual size after more aggressive pruning compared to less (because of less energy invested in fruit production), I'd like you to steer me to a single piece of research based on cutting back bearing wood on mature plants at transplanting as opposed to immature plants. Not that I'd be convinced if you found the research that it holds true for all species, because I feel certain it doesn't, but it will motivate me to go to the effort. It doesn't matter if wood stores energy if it doesn't share it with the roots. Check the literature for what you do with a spur-bound apple or pear tree. You cut back the spurs (sexually mature wood) to encourage vegetative (sexually immature) growth. I have the benefit of watching the results of the removal of such wood on a regular basis and it is a routine treatment of some of the trees I manage. You remove enough of the spur wood and the trees start growing more vigorously. Trees that have been declining in size have started growing again. The reason immature fruit trees grow proportionately faster than mature trees is because juvenile wood doesn't spare energy for fruit and flowers which is very expensive and it is well known that regardless of rootstock you can greatly control the size of most species of fruit trees by accelerating the beginning of fruit production. The greatest managment risk in commercially growing fully dwarf apples is having them fruit excessively when they are too small- they often permanently runt out. Plants runt out when inadequate energy is being sent to the roots. Vegetative wood generously feeds the roots while fruiting wood is very stingy. I transplant hundreds of bearing age fruit trees on semi-dwarfing rootstock annually, and one of my biggest problems is having peaches runt out- the treatment- aggressive pruning. It is also the way to get them to avoid the problem in the first place. I know that all, and I mean all, of Carl Whitcomb's research was based on work with a few species of very young plants, so I can't go there for researched information. Show me where to go, Brandon, for some actual research on mature plants and I'll continue this discussion, but as it stands, I just have seen too many instances where pruning back has stimulated growth on mature trees. As far as blueberry plants, I'm not so sure one way or the other. When I got out of hort-school I had all the confidence as you in the research I'd been stuffing my head with (and a good thing- it helped me disguise my inexperience). Actual experience has made me much more skeptical of sweeping assumptions based on very limited research. Much more comprehensive medical research than research we are discussing here is often contradicted by subsequent research. I'm sure this would happen more with hort research if it was pursued with similar aggression and funding.

Check out the message "Currants and Blueberries in Container?". I have my blueberries in large pots under a tree, where they get morning to noon sun and shelter from the hot afternoon sun, have a good acid soil, and don't have to compete with tree roots. It's not hard to move them as the sun pattern changes over the year, if necessary. Southmoon is giving me the best flavor and size right now, but the pot is further away from the tree, gets more sun. More blueberry plants make the best companion planting. Then there's enough for you and the birds. A territorial bluebird and several mockingbirds guard the bushes from each other in my yard, and an occasional squawk is heard as one chases the other off.

velpar works as a pre emergent in a non crop year. sinbar just works on grass in a non crop year. post is only for grass and can be applied when the grass is 3-4 inches once in a cropping year. glyphosate I only apply directly (Brush)after harvest. I have about 4 ac of low bush blue berries and go to classes put on by U of Maine every year. After 15 years I am still the newbie. I have moved from 500 lbs. per ac to 4800 lbs per ac. The old timers say that timming is everything. If you need to apply tuseday may 13 th at 2:30 at 68 degrees you best be on the tractor. Maybe that is why they get 10000- 12000 lbs per ac. When I learn all this I will have my great grand children pick me up at the nursing home and take me home to spray.