Can I use wood chips on raspberry & blueberry plants?

I just got a load of free wood chips from a landscape company.
The wood that was put thru the chipper machine was oak and pine (long needles).
I would like to know if I can mulch around the raspberry and blueberry bushes with it?
Can I also use it around the rhodies?

Well, I am not sure it you are supposed to, but I mulch with wood chips aroun d the Rhodies, and blueberrys both... but I have my raspberries mulched with black bark mulch.. don't know if there is much difference, but I use whatever I can get... so far all is well ...
Sorry I am not much help...
Blessings,
Carolyn

Carolyn,
So your rhodies and blueberries are doing just fine with the wood chips mulch?
Why do you not use the wood chips on the raspberries?
How long have you been using the wood chips for mulch on these plants?
No, I appreciate your comments. Any help is better than none.
I am hoping other people out there will share their experience with wood chips soon too.
Thanks,
Carol

Why not? They are all acid-loving.

Ok, great.
Thanks, Darius for your comment.
I just want to make sure before I put it around the rasp. bushes. I just didn't know if it was bad since it takes longer to decompose the wood chips than other types of mulch.
So while I am on the subject of wood chips, can you put it around dahlias? Would it deplete the nitrogen around them in time?
Thanks,
Carol

yes, I had mulch on my blueberries and took them off, cause they did terrible, didn't produce fruit at all, now their flourishing like crazy, but I also used an acid loving fertilizer too

What is the kind of acid fert. you use and what brand then, Kathy_ann?
Carol

ok, i'm not organic so don't hurt me LOL, I just use the miracle grow for acid loving plants.

Hey, I don't care if it isn't organic. I just like to know what is good for acid plants.
Thanks for telling me.
I will check it out. Maybe also use it for my rhodies too.
Carol

I bought some blueberry plants from Nourse Farms and received some good advice. I have never grown blueberries so I am depending on them to be experts.

They said to mulch with OLD wood chips--not those that have recently been through a chipper. I don't know how old they mean. The newer wood chips take the Nitrogen out of the soil. I am supposed to plant in a mixture of the existing soil and peat moss and add about 1/2 cup GARDEN SULFUR. They sell it on their site.

Apparently there is an elemental sufur that takes years to decompose in the soil and will not increase the acidity as quickly as you need. They also said not to use aluminum sulfur or any other additive to the sulfur. I asked at a local garden supply and they said they could order a 50 lb bag of garden sulfur for $8.00. That would last a lifetime!

Maybe some of this advice won't apply to all of you because I live in an area where the pH is about 7.0. Blueberries require under 4.8 or they will not produce berries. We are making raised beds where we will use a combination of good topsoil/compost mix, peat moss and acid planting mix.

I am determined. I hope the blueberries will be, too.

Thanks very much for your information.
I have 3 blueberry bushes that I am trying to decide if I should put the wood chips around. I am assuming the "old" means, at least aged for awhile. So I will put it around the bushes like maybe this fall after it sits around this summer.
I have never used sulfur so I may try that. I really don't know what my soil pH is, so I should probably get it tested.
Hope you get some blueberries, tho this year you are to take off all the blossoms which is very hard to do.
Thanks,
Carol

You're right, you must test the pH. I bought 2 different kinds of testers. The one where you actually mix the soil with a liquid they provide is supposed to be more accurate than the one you just stick in the soil.

I don't like picking blossoms off either--but I will do it.

I don't like thinning plants. Thinning sounds a lot like KILLING to me!

I put in 3 raspberry plants 4 years ago and have mulched them every year with wood chips. I get a ton of berries every year and have to thin back the berries every year as well or they will take over. The only feeding I do is to scatter bone meal around the base of each plant in the spring and a handfull of old coffee grounds around the base of each plant for a little acid about once a month during the growing season. Not very scinentific, but it works for me. Gil

Gil,
That is exactly the information I need!
You just told me everything I need to know plus what I have already mostly have done! Except I didn't put bone meal in the hole when I planted the canes this spring. So I think I will do that today, tho I already have some berries on the plants. I have used coffee grounds around the base too.
But I have tons of wood chips and would like to use them to keep the water moisture contained.
So thanks very much for your "un-scientific" ways. Just good gardening common sense and practice!
Carol

I would like to try and raise blueberries. My family loves them in cereal and smoothies. What is a good plant for zone 6
Thanks for any help,
Teresa in KY

Teresa,
I don't know if there are certain types of blueberry bushes for your area.
But I do know that you need to have at least 2 bushes to pollinate tho. Plus get the similar maturity types too, early-med.-or late.
I have Blueray, Earliblue, and I think BlueCrop. All are good berries. I am sure a nursery in your area would have the ones that would do good there. I don't know if it is too hot tho there. The bushes do like a lot of water and no competition around the roots.
We love to freeze them and use them in like pancakes, muffins, and etc in the winter.
Carol