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Units

Blueberry Spacing Calculator

How far apart to plant blueberries, and how many fit your bed, row or area.

Units
In the row
4 to 5 ft
Between rows
8 to 10 ft
ft

Published for Blueberry: 4 to 5 ft.

Where you plant
Pattern
ft
More optionsEdge margin
Space at the edge

Half a spacing keeps each plant inside the row ends, so neighbours in the next bed are still a full spacing away. Plant on the edge when the plants may spread past it, such as the first and last post of a hedge line.

Blueberries for this row length

11plants

0.22 per foot of row.
Top view, 50 × 4.5 ft. Each circle is the space one plant gets.
Plants per sq ft
0.05
Plants per acre
2,151
Plants per hectare
5,315
Ground per plant
20.25sq ft
Ground covered
225sq ft

How these numbers are worked out

In a square pattern the rows are one spacing apart, so each plant takes spacing × spacing of ground.

4.5 ft × 4.5 ft = 20.25 sq ft per plant

43,560 sq ft per acre ÷ 20.25 sq ft = 2,151 plants per acre

Per-area figures ignore the edges. The count for a bed, row or circle places each one, so it is usually a little lower. One acre is 43,560 sq ft; one hectare is 10,000 m².

How far apart to plant blueberries

Set highbush blueberries 4 to 5 feet apart in rows 8 to 10 feet apart, the spacing NC State Extension and Clemson Extension both give. Rabbiteye blueberries grow larger and need 6 feet in the row with 10 to 12 feet between rows. The smaller half-high types need only 3 to 4 feet between plants, per Iowa State University Extension.

The calculator starts on highbush at 4.5 ft. Pick rabbiteye or half-high in the variety menu to switch. Blueberry bushes are usually planted in a row or a hedge, so choose Row or hedge and enter the row length; a 4 × 8 ft raised bed is too small for even one highbush bush at 4.5 ft with half a spacing kept clear at the edges.

How many blueberry bushes fit a row

Row lengthHighbush, 4.5 ftRabbiteye, 6 ftHalf-high, 3.5 ft
10 ft212
25 ft547
50 ft11814
100 ft221628

Each count keeps half a spacing clear at both ends of the row, the way the calculator counts, so the next row or a path is still a full spacing away. For a second row, use the between-row spacing above; University of Maryland Extension gets by with 6 to 8 ft between highbush rows in a home garden.

Highbush, rabbiteye or half-high?

Space each type for its mature size:

  • Highbush: northern highbush grows 3 to 6 ft tall, per University of Maryland Extension, and NC State describes southern highbush at 6 to 8 ft. Maryland expects 6 to 8 lb of berries a year from a mature highbush plant.
  • Rabbiteye: 6 to 12 ft tall, per Maryland, and NC State puts its yield at 12 to 25 lb a year, which is why it gets the widest spacing.
  • Half-high: the smallest of the three, so Iowa State spaces it 3 to 4 ft apart.

Blueberries are slow. Maryland notes a plant can take up to 10 years to reach its mature size, and NC State expects about 1/2 lb per bush in the third year and 1 to 2 lb in the fourth. The spacing is for the grown bush, so young plants will look far apart for several seasons.

Soil, pollination and containers

Blueberries need an acid soil, pH 4.5 to 5.5, per Maryland Extension, so test the soil before you plant. Where the ground is wrong, a container works: University of Wisconsin-Madison Extension recommends a pot of at least 5 gallons per plant. Maryland adds that blueberries are self-fertile but give more and larger berries when two or more cultivars grow together, so plan the row for at least two varieties.

How many bushes to plant

For a household count, see how many blueberry bushes per person. To lay out a mixed fruit row, use the plant spacing calculator, and mulch the row with the mulch calculator.