Project Grant 20246800842762

** AWARDS ISSUED PRIOR TO JANUARY 20, 2025, WERE FUNDED UNDER PREVIOUS ADMINISTRATIONS AND MAY NOT REFLECT THE PRIORITIES AND POLICIES OF THE CURRENT ADMINISTRATION.** BLUEBERRY GROWERS IN THE SOUTHEAST REPORT LOWER YIELDS COMPARED WITH OTHER AREAS OF PRODUCTION IN THE UNITED STATES.FURTHERMORE, SOUTHERN HIGHBUSH BLUEBERRIES (SHB) (VACCINIUM CORYMBOSUM L. INTERSPECIFIC HYBRIDS) HAVE A SHORT COMMERCIAL LIFE ( 10 YEARS), WHEREAS RABBITEYE BLUEBERRIES (VACCINIUM VIRGATUM AIT), WHICH ARE NATIVE TO THE SOUTHEAST, PRODUCE SMALL BERRIES AND HAVE LOWER YIELDS THAN SHB.THE LOWPER ACRE PRODUCTION AMONG BLUEBERRY-PRODUCING AREAS OF THE U.S. ARE NOT ONLY DUE TO DIVERSITY IN GENETIC MATERIAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS, BUT ALSO DUE TO HEAVY DISEASE PRESSURE IN THE SOUTHEASTERN U.S. AS WELL AS THE DIFFERENT CULTURAL PRACTICES FOLLOWED. ONE SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IS THAT THE SELECTIVE PRUNING TECHNIQUES USED IN BLUEBERRY PRODUCTIONSYSTEMS IN OTHER AREAS OF THE UNITED STATESARE NOT UTILIZED IN SOUTHEAST BLUEBERRY PRODUCTION SYSTEMS.BLUEBERRIES IN THE SOUTHEAST ARE MECHANICALLY PRUNED (HEDGING) AFTER HARVEST TO REDUCE BUSH HEIGHT;THIS TYPE OF PRUNING REDUCES THE COST OF HAND PRUNING. HOWEVER, HEDGING INCREASES THE NUMBER OF SHOOTS PER CANE, DOES NOT ALLOW FOR THE SELECTION OF GOOD-BEARING WOOD, AND CAUSES HEAVY CROP LOAD, THUS CAUSING CARBOHYDRATE DEPLETION, WHICH CAN LEAD TO LOWER YIELD PER ACRE AND THE SHORT LIFE OF BLUEBERRY STANDS. IN CONTRAST, SELECTIVE PRUNING ALLOWS FOR CROP LOAD MANAGEMENT, CREATES VIGOROUS LATERALS, AND BALANCES REPRODUCTIVE AND VEGETATIVE GROWTH, LEADING TO CONSECUTIVE HIGH YIELDS. THE LONG-TERM GOAL OF THIS PROJECT IS TO INCREASE THE ECONOMIC SUSTAINABILITY OF BLUEBERRY FIELDS IN THE SOUTHEAST BY IDENTIFYING THE IMPACTS OF SELECTIVE PRUNING ON THE COMMERCIAL LIFE OF BLUEBERRY FIELDS, FRUIT PRODUCTION, AND QUALITY OF BLUEBERRIES IN THE SOUTHEAST.