Pruning blueberries bushes is an essential part of management if you want to harvest good quality fruit. Pruning your blueberries bushes encourages new growth, prevents over growth of the bush, defines the shape and height of your bush, and can improve productivity.

Methods and Materials

We should be pruning our blueberries in the winter months while they are dormant. Tools that you might need include long handled loppers and hand pruners. Use the loppers for canes that might be 2 inches in diameter and the hand pruners for small canes or shaping your bush to your desire. When pruning, be sure to make flush cuts so that we do not leave any stubs.

Winter Pruning (November–March)

For established blueberries, start by removing any growth around the base of the bush and any growth from the ground in a 12-inch radius around the bush. Then, prune out any low angled or crossing canes or stems. The low angle branches could cause blueberries to come in contact with the ground and can make them more susceptible to disease. It is also easier to harvest blueberries at chest to head level.

It is important for most fruiting bushes or trees to open up the center. This increases air flow and remove any older canes that might be the cause of crowding. As the blueberry bush grows and the canes age, it will constantly produce small twigs that are unproductive and often times produce small berries. To avoid this, thin your bush out and make cuts that remove bushy clumps of these small twigs. You can also head-back or cut any canes that are too tall. Throughout the season it is always good to remove any dead, diseased or damaged branches.

Pruning New Plants

For newly established plants, we recommend you remove all flower buds and pruning back 1/2 to 2/3 of the height of the bush at time of planting. This will encourage healthy root establishment and vigor for the following season.

Bladen County is the top blueberry producing county in North Carolina at 5,736 acres of blueberry production. According to the 2022 NC Ag Census, North Carolina produces 38.1 million pounds in a year. With more than 100 blueberry operation in North Carolina we rank 6^th in the nation for blueberry production. That is 8.5% of the nations blueberries. For more information about blueberries production and the industry, contact your local extension office.

Blueberry Information Portal- North Carolina State University

Southern Region Small Fruit Consortium