You know what a massive harvest one plant can yield if you’ve ever grown a blueberry before. Want a larger harvest? Let’s face it: the more sweet blueberries we can get, the better. Blueberries react well to companion planting.
It’s simple to blend blueberries with companion plants, and seeing how they assist each other by repelling pests while promoting stronger development is fascinating.
Let’s talk about intercropping your blueberry plants if you want plenty of berries and healthy plants surrounding them.
Perfect Conditions For Blueberries
Plants that grow in comparable circumstances are required to accompany blueberries.
Soil pH of 4.5 is ideal for blueberries. They favor well-rotted organic matter and free-draining soil.
Plant them in the sun and protect them from the wind. In the day, a little shade is fine, but not too much.
Best Companion Plants For Blueberries
To go with the blueberries, we’ll examine the plants.
1. Strawberry
For blueberries, this is my favorite companion plant. They like acidic soil and don’t care what berries they have. You may leave the strawberries to develop next season in warm weather since you won’t be disturbing the blueberry roots by digging new holes.
You may achieve a happy medium with the blueberry requirement by planting strawberries at a pH of around 5.4.
2. Borage
Borage is a favorite of pollinators, and blueberries benefit significantly from its placement. Borage adds small minerals to the soil that blueberries may benefit from, and it improves the flavor of blueberries.
Borage self-seeds, so you don’t have to replant it every year. When planted next to a plant, it’s also claimed to enhance its resistance to insect and disease.
Borage may seed itself in locations where you didn’t intend it to, so be aware. If you don’t want any little plants there, simply remove them.
3. Basil
Many plants, like blueberry, thrive alongside basil. The soil around the roots of blueberries may be shaded by basil.
Thrips are repelled by basil, which flies and mosquitoes dislike.
4. Thyme
Thyme keeps the soil moist and weeds under control by acting like a ground cover. The pheromones of thyme may repel pests that like to devour your delicious berries.
Make certain you select the ground-cover kind, not the upright kinds.
5. Sage
Sage will grow well in acidic soil, particularly when planted with blueberries, despite its preference for alkaline soil. Sage responds by producing robust, big leaves when planted near blueberry.
It attracts a lot of beneficial insects when sage blooms. Sage repels black flea beetles, among other insects.
6. Dill
Dill, in my opinion, is a particularly good super-companion plant for blueberries. It repels pests like spider mites and is drought tolerant, so it doesn’t steal all of the blueberry water.
Beneficial insects, such as ladybugs, are drawn to Dill. Aphids, who like blueberries, will be their main source of food. Plant Dill if you’ve got aphids.
7. Comfrey
Comfrey is a helpful plant, but it bears a cautionary note. Comfrey has the potential to dominate an area once it is planted, and it spreads readily.
You’ll need to dig out any little plants you see if you want to keep an eye on its spread.
Comfrey is a fantastic mulch and fertilizer.
Either wait for the blueberry plant to fall over and mulch the area, or chop it and lay it on top of the soil around it. This not only retains moisture, but it also helps to break down the soil and deliver valuable nutrients.
Comfrey attracts beneficial bacteria to its roots, which fixes nitrogen problems in the soil.
8. Parsley
Because of its ability to grow in acidic soils, parsley makes a good companion. Parsley is a favorable plant to grow near blueberries because of its ability to draw beneficial insects while repelling pests.
9. Rhododendron
Planting rhododendron with blueberries is a fun project. They prefer acidic soil, but require shade rather than full sunlight. In exchange for the shade, highbush blueberries benefit rhododendrons, and they keep their soil shaded, resulting in moist soil in the heat of the day.
10. Lilac
Another purple flower that blooms at the same time as the blueberries are ripe is Lilac, which thrives in acidic soil. Lilacs attract pollinators and protect the soil surrounding blueberry plants from the sun.
11. Oaks
Given the size of oak trees, their slow growth rate, and the fact that they don’t normally grow in an edible garden, this might seem a little strange.
Blueberries make a fantastic understory plant if you have a method of planting where you put edibles all throughout like in a food forest. Blueberries, on the other hand, are a natural fruit and make for a delicious treat when discovered while hiking or camping.
The roots of oak trees retain a considerable amount of water, which is particularly important. Nutrients are supplied by the fallen leaves.
Temperate climates are ideal for both oak trees and blueberries. Planting oak with understory of blueberries if you have a forest, field, or vast area. You might find wild blueberries on your property if the birds distribute seed.
12. Wildflowers
Wildflowers are native flowers that have not been genetically modified. They go great with blueberries, and they’re a nice pairing.
Pollinators, as well as predators such as ladybugs and predatory wasps, are drawn to wildflowers.
To be beneficial, plant close or up to 20 feet away. Depending on where you live, wildflowers might include the following:
- Bee Balm
- Poppies
- Lupine
- Queen Anne’s Lace
- Purple Coneflower
- Daisies
For even more variety, you might purchase a cottage garden wildflower mix.
13. Sweet Fern
This is a low-growing acid-loving plant (Comptonia peregrina) that will not shade the blueberries since it is an acid-loving plant. It’s a really nice companion plant because it also loves the sun.
Blueberries benefit from the sweet fern, which produces nitrogen. Sweet ferns are likewise attractive to butterflies, so you’ll want them in your garden.
14. Pine Trees
If you have a stand of pine trees around the place, don’t discount them like oak trees. Because of the acidic soils surrounding pine trees, it’s a good time to plant blueberries as an understory.
You must make sure the blueberry plants aren’t smothered by the falling pine needles, which act as a natural mulch that repels many pests. They also need enough sunlight and water.
Planting Blueberries With Companions in Containers
Blueberries are frequently planted in containers by gardeners. Sunlight on a balcony can encourage a successful harvest. Companions may be planted in the same pot as the blueberry plant, as long as it is sufficiently big and you do not disturb its roots. Give it a try:
- Strawberries
- Pineberries
- Curly parsley
- Thyme
- Basil
The extra water and nutrients your plants will need should be taken into account.
Plants to Avoid Putting With Blueberries
Unfortunately, blueberries don’t like certain of the best veggies because of the acidic soil that they prefer.
1. Tomatoes
Closer to blueberries may stunt the development and influence the quantity of berries, while tomato plants are heavy feeders. Keep them at a distance from one another. Because they prefer alkaline soil, many tomato plants don’t like the same pH as blueberries. Any nightshade-related plants should be avoided:
- Peppers
- Potatoes
- Eggplant
Blueberries and eggplants don’t belong together. Eggplants merit special notice, despite their nightshade origin. You should not plant blueberries where you had eggplant the previous season because it stunts the growth of blueberries.
2. Beets
Each of these fruits will stunt the other’s development. You’ll notice the problem with the blueberry harvest even when you harvest fast-growing beets early in the season. The blueberry patch should be kept away from keep beets.
3. Brassicas
Brassicas like a more acidic environment than blueberries. They may also become too big and shade the blueberries. The health of the blueberry plant, as well as the harvest, will be affected by this. It’s not a good idea to plant brassicas near blueberries:
- Kale
- Cabbage
- Brussel Sprouts
- Broccoli
- Cauliflower
4. Legumes
Being a poor blueberry buddy, legumes prefer a soil pH of up to 6.8. While certain legumes may tolerate more acidic soil, they will replace the blueberries and result in a small berry harvest.
Legumes include:
- Beans
- Peas
- Clover
- Alfalfa
- Peanuts
- Lentils
- Soybeans
- Chickpeas
As you can see, the soil pH is the greatest difficulty with blueberry companion planting, followed by plants that stunt growth in both pairing.
If they are acidic soil lovers, research the pH of any companion plant and give them a try.