Vitality Blueberry

Vitality Blueberry (Vaccinium 'Vitality') is a low chill selection, which is the detail that matters: it fruits in subtropical and warm temperate gardens where traditional blueberries will not crop. It makes a tidy deciduous shrub of about 1.5m tall and 1.2m wide, with white bell flowers in spring and berries through the warm months. In a pot on a sunny balcony it is one of the most productive edible plants for a small space.

Why you'll love it

• It fruits in warm climates. Low chill breeding means it crops without the long cold winter older varieties demand, opening the plant up to subtropical gardeners.
• Genuinely suited to pots. Blueberries need acidic soil, and a container is the easiest way to give them exactly that.
• Safe around pets. Not toxic to cats or dogs, worth knowing for a plant grown at nose height on a patio.
• Flowers the bees work. The white bell shaped blooms are a genuine early nectar source, and better pollination means a heavier crop.
• Copes with damper ground. More tolerant of wet feet than most fruiting shrubs.

Where it works best

Pots and balconies. The best option for most gardeners. A pot 400mm or wider filled with acidic or ericaceous mix sidesteps the soil problem entirely, and the shrub is compact and productive enough to earn a spot on a small balcony.

Borders and small gardens. For a low edible border, plant about 1m apart. At roughly 1.2m wide the bushes meet into a productive run while staying open enough to pick from both sides.

Growing the Vitality blueberry in Australia

Position and climate. Full sun for the heaviest crop, with a little afternoon shade acceptable in the hottest inland gardens. It suits subtropical, warm temperate, cool temperate and Mediterranean climates, and it is both frost hardy and heat tolerant. Being deciduous, it rests over winter.

Soil. The one thing blueberries are fussy about. They need acidic soil, ideally pH 4.5 to 5.5, and they yellow and stall in neutral or alkaline ground. Work compost and an acidifying amendment through the bed, or use ericaceous mix in a pot. Mulch with pine bark.

Water and feed. Keep the soil consistently moist while berries are swelling, because the root system is shallow and dries out fast in a pot. Use rainwater where you can, since hard tap water pushes the pH up. Feed with a fertiliser for acid loving plants in early spring and after harvest.

Pruning. Very little in the first two years beyond removing weak or crossing stems. From year three, take out the oldest wood at the base each winter to keep young canes coming.

What to expect when it arrives

It is supplied as a 140mm pack of ten, which suits a row, a shared order between neighbours, or anyone planting a berry patch. They are young established plants rather than advanced bushes, and being deciduous a winter delivery may arrive as bare stems with dormant buds, which is normal.

Expect a light crop in the first season and a real one from year two. Plants are delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95. Every plant is covered by our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• How to lower soil pH for acid loving plants
• Browse the edible plant range
• Find more plants that thrive in containers
• See other plants that are safe around pets

Common questions

Do I need more than one plant to get fruit?

A single bush will crop, but blueberries fruit more heavily when several are planted near each other and the flowers are cross pollinated. The pack of ten makes that straightforward.

Can I grow it in Brisbane or northern New South Wales?

Yes, and that is the point of a low chill selection. It sets fruit without the sustained winter cold older varieties need, so subtropical gardens are well within range.

Why are the leaves turning yellow between the veins?

Almost always soil pH. In neutral or alkaline soil a blueberry cannot take up iron, so the leaves yellow while the veins stay green. Acidify the soil or move it into ericaceous mix.