Blueberries

SAVRpak extends shelf life of berries, grapes during trials

SAVRpak has released a new moisture-control technology that extends the shelf life of fresh produce by up to three times, trials have shown. The Drop-In technology is a chemical-free, biodegradable pouch that is placed in... more »

NABC, USHBC add new director of business intelligence

Joe Vargas has been hired as the director of business intelligence for the U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council and North American Blueberry Council. In this newly created role, Vargas is responsible for developing and leading a... more »

Fall Creek promotes key executives

Fall Creek Farm & Nursery, Inc., an international blueberry breeding and nursery company, has promoted two long-tenured employees to its executive leadership team, further strengthening the company’s breeding, variety development and production quality assurance functions.... more »

NIFA helps producers meet high demand for blueberries

Blueberries are the second-most produced berries in the United States, after strawberries, according to USDA’s Economic Research Services. Over the past 10 years, the supply of fresh blueberries available for American consumption has increased fivefold.... more »

Successful pollination key to strawberry, blueberry production

Strawberries are aggregate fruits. They have multiple ovules per receptacle where the fruit is formed. The strawberry receptacle may have up to 500 ovules per berry. You will see these as “seeds” on the outside... more »

Would blueberries benefit from more nitrogen?

It is soon time to apply nitrogen fertilizer to blueberries. Urea or ammonium sulfate are the recommended materials. Use urea if your soil pH is in the recommended range of 4.5 to 5.0 and use... more »

Botryosphaeria stem blight of blueberry a concern in Southeast

Recently, the number of Botryosphaeria stem blight infected blueberry bushes is increasing in Alabama farms. Blueberry stem blight (Botryosphaeria dothidea) is a fungal disease known as the primary disease limiting establishment of blueberry plantings in the Southeast. Pathogen... more »

Florida blueberry season: Top-notch fruit, tools and knowledge

Florida’s blueberry production, harvest and shipping season has kicked off. The state’s blueberry industry has grown rapidly in the past 20 years. Today, Florida farmers grow more than 5,200 acres of blueberries, producing about 20... more »