Raven, I have no experience with blueberries or low ph soil. My experience in the fertilizer business has been that dry sulfer is the cheapest. If I remember right dry sulfer comes in a 90% formulation. Ammonium sulfate adds some, but you would have to use a LOT of product compared to just using dry sulfer. You can not dissolve Dry sulfer into a slurry though I don't think. If you want to go liquid it comes that way, but it costs a lot more. Here are a couple links for you. http://www.algreatlakes.com/PDF/factsheets/ALGLFS28_Reducing_Soil_pH_Field_Crops.PDF http://www.tigersul.com/products/agriculture/bentonite-sulphur/tiger-90-cr-sulphur.html To truly amend an 1/2 acre of 6 ph down to 4.5 you would need 855 pounds of a 90% dry sulfer, with a cost of $300-400. It would take 5900 pounds of ammonium sulfate ($1200-2000) to do the same thing, and adding that much AMS would add a lot of nitrogen and Im not sure if you would need that or not. Around here you could find a dry fertilizer outfit to bring a spreader out if it was a big enough job. 1/2 acre not so much. But I bet it could be done as an experiment even with a yard spreader, or some kind of pull behind a 4-wheeler spreader. It would just take some math to make sure you got it spread right. It would need incorporated, either with rain or mechanically. If my calculations are right it would take 296 gallons of a 26% liquid sulfer product to amend 1/2 acre from 6 down to 4.5ph.

I'm in zone 7 and have just started growing Chandler, Brigitta, Chippewa. I have not grown blueberries for about 15 years, when I lived in zone 8. Since KURITE is way north of me, I looked up what varieties had large fruit, varied fruit times, and were reliably hardy that far north. Everything else being equal, I agree that bigger is often better for fruit. One exception that I look out for is that bigger is always better for commercial growers. Sometimes varieties developed for commercial growers have stressed size and shipping ease above all other traits, so I always search the "fine print" when I read about an extra larger variety. I also agree with FrankTank, that the flavor of homegrown is so much better than commercially grown, that I don't notice differences in flavor among varieties of homegrown fruit very much. What I wanted to stress was that soil prep is always important, but with blueberries it is perhaps more important than other fruits. Besides their need for extremely low pH, they have more shallow roots than many other fruits. If I'm planting a pear tree, amending the planting hole will give it a little help the first year, but its tap root is going to be heading down beyond the planting hole very quickly, so you can't do much except hope your soil is adequate and give it some fertilizer in the springtime. Because blueberries develop very shallow, dense, and fibrous root systems, preparation of the soil before planing has much more benefit. Because their roots are shallow and dense, they dry out very quickly, but they also need soil that drains and isn't too heavy. Since KURITE was working with a small space, I recommended preparing the soil almost the same as if growing them in a container. The extreme soil amending I suggested would not be practical for someone with lots of blueberry plants, but for KURITE I think it would be worth the effort so that the plants would have the best possible environment for maximum production from a small space. The $20 or so it will cost for the oil absorbent will make a big difference with a small area because it keeps the soil very friable for the plants' small roots. It is exceptionally good at holding moisture and nutrients for the plants roots. Because their roots don't spread out as much as other plants their size, blueberries need a medium that is moisture and nutrient dense. Peat works well at first for this, but it decays and compacts quickly, whereas the oil absorbents are insert and last virtually forever. They are used for containers very successfully and are consumer accessible versions of the products used to maintain baseball fields. Growers of Bonsai have used similar products for centuries for the same reason I suggest it for blueberries, because in both cases you are dealing with plants that are depending upon a root system with limited space.

I love everyones pictures. I especially love Shades first picture, the composition is perfect. The blue in the lower left picks up the dark color on the edge of guacamole. The light green below the bush, to the left of guacamole and in the lower right are balanced. The light edge of Stiletto brings out the flowers of the bush. Really nice! Alexa that is really a great statue. I just noticed the face on it which I didn't see the frist time. You've inspired me to start a thread on Objects in the Garden. I'll put it on conversations because some of my pictures don't have hostas in them. It looks like our 2nd nice day so far. I'll be outside soon. McT

Hi Folks. Something new has come to light: A chap from another forum, who is also showing a lot of interest in the piece, has found this: http://www.liveauctioneers.com/item/6838232 The design, if not quality of workmanship, is virtually identical in both pieces. I wonder if one of them is the original or more likely, done from an original that must be out there somewhere. An elderly aunt has just been in touch to say that she believes William Mason (great-great-great granddad) may have acquired the piece earlier from the Johnston family who were at Danson before Alfred Bean. I have found this picture of the family: I have been able to find out a fair amount about the history of Danson House through this link: http://www.bexleyheritagetrust.org.uk/dansonhouse/ Linda. I will not be to disappointed if the piece does not fetch as much as the American Emblem seen through your link, but would be nice though:-) Barebell. Definatley found what you had to say very interesting. I will certainly check out the Salisbury Company you mention. Thanks again for your input Guys Mark.