WOW! I wish I had enough land to do that. It's amazing!

What a wonderful start you have on your own Garden of Eden (or Eatin :))
I WANT some blueberry bushes so much.
I'm just going to have to sit down and order them online now that the weather has cooled me down enough to even think about digging outside.
Going to look up Willis Orchards right now...

I was impressed with Willis. The trees arrived as advertised and looked healthy. Prices are right too!

Very nice austin! You should have some beautiful fruit in no time. Your lot looks great and you decked it out wonderfully! Keep us posted.

Austin
Is it okay to ask where you live? Your yard and neighborhood look just like what we've been wanting. Is there any property for sale?
We have our home up for sale here in Chokoloskee and have been looking for houses in the center of the state and the
east coast.
I would LOVE to own something just like you and your wife have - complete with vineyard, orchard and berry patches! You are so lucky.....
Susie

what kind of blackberries? blueberries? peaches? let's have names!

you'd be ok to leave the blueberries alone for right now, or you could remove about 25% of the top growth, more to lower the stress than any other reason. yours look healthy, though, so there's probably no reason. they might very well start to bloom a bit (mine are blooming now) -- pop those blooms off, and when they bloom again in the early spring, pop those blooms off, too. you don't want ANY fruiting the first season.

read here, keeping in mind that the guidelines are for commercial growers, but the theory is the same...

Here is a link that might be useful: pruning bberries

Susie,
I live in Sorrento FL, it is just outside of Mt. Dora. And yes, there are lots of homes around here for sale. There is one in my community (small community of 12 homes) but it is low without too much sun exposure. This area is incredible though. It is perfect for a gardener. There are a million and a half nurseries located within ten miles, we are all on wells, and most of the lots are 1+ acre.

Ache,
We have Methley and Elephant heart plums, Navajo and black satin blackberries, Sharpblue, misty, and O'neill blueberries, Red Baron and Florida prince peaches. The grapes are Fry and Nesbitt. I love the UF-EDIS web-inars. Only problem is, without pictures I never know how much to prune!!

Austin, it all looks fantastic! You've done a SUPER job, and I hope you got my email from a week or so ago. I DO have plants for you, and seeds you would like. But my mother is still not well. She was supposed to have several cardiac tests done this week, but after an episode during dinner Sunday, I took her to the doctor yesterday, and she has been admitted to the hospital again. I'm thinking she will likely get a pacemaker today and that might take care of these issues.

At any rate, with luck, by next week my time should be my own again and we can bring some things to you.

Folks, I've SEEN Austin's yard and his BEEEYOOOTIFUL big house, and he lives in PARADISE, I swear! The countryside as you come up to his property is just gorgeous, with rolling green hills, loads of trees, and splendid scenery. And his garden was looking great the day we were there. The tallest tomatoes I've ever seen, I think. (Did those big ones ever set fruit). And green peppers the size of basketballs, lush looking herbs, and more! He's done a wonderful job, and as one of our youngest members, I think we should all commend him for taking the time to learn about gardening and doing such a super job. I don't know many guys his age who are really interested in gardening, so it does my heart good to see that it is important and enjoyable to him and his wife.

Outstanding, Austin!! See you soon!

Marcia

austin!
interesting. i think your cultivar choices are great. i hadn't thought of plums, and it seems either of those would work well here in central FLA. but why black satin blackberries? do you know that they survive & produce here? i ask b/c i'm putting together my willis order & might be interested in adding a blackberry.

btw, you should make it over here to deland sometime -- check out castorp's garden & mine. we're only about 40 minutes from you.

Your plantings all look great and well done. One note, I just read that mushroom compost tends to be high in PH. Hopefully the pine and sulfur will counteract that to keep the PH low enough. I just built a 50' long blueberry bed with lots of finely ground composted mulch, which will probably be base in PH. I'm going to top it with pinebark, which I"m hoping it works like I've read, where the blueberries keep their roots in the bark, 6 to 8" deep. Will be great if we can get some nice harvests in a few years!

Gary

Mt Dora area is FANTASTIC!!!!!
And you are doing a great job with your property. Fruit gardens are an investment in your future! How proud you will be when you begin to harvest great amounts of your own produce! good luck!

Ache,
Sorry it took so long to get back to you. I was on vacation over Thanksgiving. From what I have read the black satin is a low chill variety that does well in Southern Arkansas and such.. So, hopefully it will do well here. It is not listed on the UF EDIS literature.

dghays,
I hope the sulfur and bark are enough. I have not had the soil tested yet, but it would take a good four months for the acidity to lower in the soil anyways.. I really want the blues to do well!! I will keep firing pine bark at them all the time!

Austin

pine bark just does NOT cut it. twice this year already i have had to add sulfur to the area around my plants to keep the pH below 5.5. -- things wash out too quickly in our excessively-drained soils. the sulfur works, but only for a certain amount of time.

invest in a $20 pH meter (ebay). i use mine once a month all over the yard, mostly out of curiosity, but also to monitor my blueberries.

on the upside, blueberries like such acidic soil that most weeds here can't grow anywhere near them!

I got some blueberries from Waters Blueberry farm and upon their advice I excavated a 24" diameter hole 24" deep and back-filled with Canadian Sphagnum Peat Moss, ONLY. Zero native "soil" was put bac inot the hole. These 5 bushes are doing the best I have ever seen any blueberry bushes perform.

CanÂt say 100% it is the peat moss or the nursery stock or a combination of the two, but I'd heartily recommend both.

At our rare fruit club a gentlemen from U of FL showed a presentation about pine bark beds. This can be googled to find lots of information about it.

Gary