BB rejuvenative pruning - when is too late?

We have a half-dozen rabbiteye blueberries that my dad rooted and brought north to us back around 1996. They really need rejuvenative pruning, but I’ve always been reluctant to pass up on the berries they produce… but younger bushes are taking up the slack now, and these old gals are pretty straggly, with reduce productivity.

That said, is it too late to cut them back and expect reasonable regrowth, or should I leave them alone for now, and cut them back hard next spring?

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I would try cutting out/removing the canes nearly dead and the ones that seem to be more than around 6 years old. And if it’s still over-crowded with canes, snip some more either now or in winter.

But, Others may have a better plan than mine…so I’ll listen.

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I like to do it right after harvest. The spring is fine, late winter too, but I get the berries this way.
Yes the oldest canes should be removed. Some exceptions, if an old cane has a new branch on it, I sometimes prune it only to new growth. If it’s growing branches the cane is still viable.
Remove any weak new growth too. It works well, bet they produce more! I would remove no more than 1/3 which is the standard for most pruning. It will take a few years to get into good production. Blueberry plants have a 50 year life span.

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