Oops hit the wrong button and deleted my post
I know some people mix vinegar in water to lower the water pH and thus over time the soil. Here in So. CA the municipal water pH is 8 and it’s why these “acid mixes” don’t do that great. Some farmers inject sulfuric acid at low dose to improve crop yields, works amazingly well… So well I am going to try it.
As for sulfur, I bought Tiger 90 pellets and need to give it more time to know how it affected my soil.
@ 7.99 for a 4lb bag I can’t imagine not adding it along with the elemental sulfur. I used both to turn my blueberry bed that did nothing but grow smaller every year to one that thrived.
That would be a mistake. The acid is organic and soon will be broken down. Same with any organic acid. Vinegar long term will not change soil pH at all.
Well for a couple weeks it will work. You have to use inorganic acids. Ok for temporary use.
Yeah, not sure really about long-term soil, but I know the water pH here is very high 7’s or sometimes over 8. There is a local landscape nursery that fertigates and adjusts pH. Their plants look absolutely amazing and I think that is why, the lower pH should help micro nutrient uptake and probably need less fertilizer.
There is another method some farms use they hyper oxygenate the water. They use nano bubbles like they use in some hydroponics. The difference is like how fresh rainwater makes plants grow so much faster compared to water from the spigot.
Where did you find the Ericoid Mycorrhizae. I have asked around and Field & Forest said they are difficult to culture to be sold. I have read getting a shovel of soil from blueberry fields could work.
Yes, true, blueberries need the low pH for most nutrient uptake.
Interesting! I have at times used H2O2 diluted in water to kill anaerobic pathogens in seedling soil. Also kills gnat larvae. I heard it was good for roots too, appears so by what you say. Adding hydrogen peroxide is about the same thing as adding bubbles.
I myself only use rainwater. Makes things a lot easier.
At one time Park Seed sold it. Not anymore, not in years.
Some wholesalers still sell it, I found one but link is lost, sorry.
ON the web a decade ago I read this and save it. Sorry I can’t credit original poster. Links are probably dead.
mycorrhizal fungi for blueberries
Blueberries are in the heath family, ericaceae.
This means that they must have
symbiotic fungi to live properly, being so adapted to having mycorrhizae as to not
have root hairs. I did a bit of quick research, and it turns out the issue is weirder than I first thought. Plants of the family ericaceae, and specifically blueberries have a type of mycorrhizial association called ericoid mycorrhizae, typically fungi of the genus Hymenoscypus or Rhizoscyphus, and most typically Rhizoscyphus ericae. And without digging deep into weird places I doubt I could get culture of that fungus. If I were you, I would try and get a bit of soil/root mass from a thriving old established blueberry / wild vaccinium / cranberry / heath / rhododendron / heather plant in decending order of preference; and try and get said soil around the roots as a sort of seed to hopefully get the inoculation. No hurry, but the fungus is how they get their food to a large degree, unless they are in a nursery getting weak chemical fertilizers in the water, in which case they don’t even need the fungus and it tends to atrophy unless fed.
References:
http://cropsoil.psu.edu/sylvia/mycorrhiza
http://www.angelfire.com/wizard/kimbrough/Textbook/Mycorrhizae_blue.htm
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@Drew51, I ordered some McolorpHast test strips. How long do you leave them in the soil to take a measurement?
I have been hearing about the benefits of adding special mycorrhizae when planting Blueberries since I set out my first 2 acres of plants in 1982.
I consulted with two different experts on Blueberries in my state to get their thoughts over that time, Both were specialist on Blueberries who spent most of their time with large commercial growers and the rest researching, publishing or teaching classes. Some well known Blueberry varieties were introduced by one of these experts.
Neither person thought adding a specific mycorrhizae to Blueberries would produce any big benefits.
A while back I noticed a report from SARE on " Cost-benefit analysis of inoculating blueberry bushes with ericoid mycorrhizae." SARE is involved with a lot of research on sustainable production methods that offer an alternative to conventional chemical based agriculture. Looks like they were not able to identify any cost benefits over the 3 year study but perhaps they will find some later.
https://projects.sare.org/project-reports/fne12-770/
Thought I should also mention that our 2 acres of Rabbiteye plants do very well and produce yields much above average for my area at around 10K pounds per acre. We still have a handful of plants from 1982 that are still producing fruit although they are beyond their prime production years.
The strips can be read quickly. Leave in only a minute. I sometimes put back and read in ten minute to confirm. Strips become inaccurate if left in too long.
If you get a reading of 4.0 best flush with tap water to bring up. If near 7.0 you need to add sulfur and I do a feeding of ammonium sulfate to lower quickly. Actually I use Peters fertilizer which has some AS. I don’t like pure AS as it needs to be kept in tightly sealed container else it hardens into a rock.
I also add chelated iron to lower pH too.
I was just thinking about these strips and one guy I know makes a slurry of the soil and distilled water.
I always felt that may react depending on ratio of soil to water. So I always felt directly in the soil was better. I was more thinking it would be too dilute and give a false high. If close to mud I guess it should read correctly. Using distilled water only the soil can make strip read acidic.
A probe is the best way to test soil but probes must be not only clean but all oxidation needs to be removed too to work correctly. They don’t seem to last long and seem to give too many false readings.
Thanks for the info @Drew51!
Another question: if it turns out I need to further lower the ph, I’ll add more sulfur for the long run and ammonium sulfate for short term. How often would I need to add ammonium sulfate this year to keep the ph down?
Well since it’s fertilizer you have to be careful. It’s like the crack of fertilizers 21-0-0-24S. You can easily kill plants with it. I would use 1 tsp per gallon once every 2 weeks. I’m very conservative. It probably can be used weekly. As mentioned I use Jacks acid special
It is a complete fertilizer has potassium and phosphorus and has micro nutrients. Contains ammonium sulfate so will lower pH.Follow label directions for amounts to use. And for how often. It’s great because this quick lowering of pH allows the plant to absorb all the nutrients you’re adding.
How about Berry Tone? Same maker, claims it is for fruits like blueberries.
They are exctly the same
Interesting! Then I will buy the one that is on sale since the store sometimes has one cheaper.