How to Make Blueberries Grow in Soil With Neutral pH

Clean your future blueberry patch of all existing weeds and other vegetation. Use a garden tiller to pull up buried roots. Rake up the dead vegetation and remove it from the area.

Perform a basic soil test on the cleared site, selecting portions of the soil for the test from all areas of your blueberry patch. Follow the instructions on the test results to improve soil porosity and replace any depleted nutrients. Add vegetative mulch, such as raked leaves or aged compost, to create a loose, loamy soil blend.

Increase the acidity of your neutral pH soil by adding elemental sulfur. Use the granulated form of sulfur. The amount of sulfur you need to add in order to decrease the acidity depends on the current pH level and calcium carbonate content of your existing soil. Follow the instructions on your soil test results and the product label on the sulfur package to bring the pH level to around 4.5 to 5.0. Clay soils tend to require more sulfur than sandy and loamy mediums.

Till the elemental sulfur into the topsoil to a depth of at least 8 inches. Mix the soil well by going over the site two or three times with your tiller. Test the soil in the planting site a second time about three or four months later. Sulfur reaction takes several months to increase the acidity of your soil. Once your soil test shows a pH level between 4.5 and 5.0, you can plant your blueberry plants.

Plant your blueberry plants in your garden in the springtime after soaking the barefoot plants for an hour in a bucket of water. Space, plant and water the blueberries according to the instructions included with your particular cultivars.

Retest the soil in your blueberry patch at least once or twice a year, adding amendments as instructed to keep the pH level between 4.5 and 5.5.