Overview

Bring a splash of color and flavor to your garden with the exceptional pink lemonade blueberry plant. This captivating variety of rabbiteye blueberry plant, scientifically known as Vaccinium ashei ‘Pink Lemonade’, is a vibrant live plant renowned for its stunning pink fruit. Unlike traditional blue blueberries, this unique cultivar ripens to a beautiful rosy hue, offering a sweet and juicy flavor profile with a pleasant tartness. Perfect for fresh eating, baking, or making jams, this deciduous fruit bush will not only provide delicious berries but also add ornamental value with its attractive foliage and delicate white-pink flowers in spring. Growing 6-8 inches tall, this starter plant is established and ready to be transplanted into your garden or a larger container, promising years of delightful harvests.

Key Benefits

The pink lemonade blueberry plant offers a multitude of benefits, making it a highly desirable addition for both novice and experienced gardeners. Its unique fruiting characteristics and robust growth contribute to its popularity.

• Unique Edible Fruit: Enjoy an abundance of sweet, firm berries that ripen to a beautiful bright pink, a delightful and unusual twist on the classic blueberry. These berries are excellent for fresh consumption, baking, or preserves.
• Ornamental Appeal: Beyond its fruit, this rabbiteye blueberry plant provides year-round visual interest. It features delicate bell-shaped flowers in spring, lush green foliage that turns brilliant orange and red in the fall, and attractive reddish stems in winter.
• High Yields: Known for its prolific fruiting, the ‘Pink Lemonade’ variety offers generous harvests of delicious blueberries, ensuring you have plenty to enjoy throughout the season.
• Self-Pollinating (Improved with Cross-Pollination): While technically self-pollinating, planting another rabbiteye variety nearby will significantly increase fruit production and berry size, leading to an even more abundant harvest.
• Adaptable & Resilient: This Vaccinium Rabbiteye variety is generally hardy and tolerant of various climates, making it a reliable choice for many home gardens. It’s a robust and relatively easy-to-grow edible fruit plant.
• Health Benefits: Blueberries are packed with antioxidants, vitamins, and fiber, contributing to a healthy diet. Harvesting your own means fresh, organic goodness.
• Attracts Wildlife: The flowers attract pollinators like bees, and the berries may attract birds, adding natural activity to your garden ecosystem.

Plant Care & Growing Tips

Caring for your pink lemonade blueberry plant is straightforward, ensuring a bountiful harvest with proper attention. These plants thrive in specific conditions that mimic their natural habitat. For optimal growth and fruit production, ensure your rabbiteye blueberry plant receives adequate sunlight. It prefers full sun, meaning at least 6-8 hours of direct sunlight per day. In hotter climates, some afternoon shade can be beneficial to prevent scorching. Plant in well-draining, acidic soil with a pH between 4.5 and 5.5. Incorporating peat moss or pine bark into the planting hole can help achieve the ideal acidity. If your soil is naturally alkaline, consider growing in containers with an acidic potting mix.

Watering is crucial, especially during dry spells and fruit development. Keep the soil consistently moist but never waterlogged. Deep watering 2-3 times a week is generally better than frequent shallow watering. Fertilize in early spring with an acid-loving plant fertilizer, such as one designed for azaleas or rhododendrons, or a specific blueberry fertilizer. Avoid fertilizers containing nitrates, which can be harmful. Pruning should be done in late winter or early spring while the plant is dormant. Remove dead, damaged, or weak branches, and thin out older canes to encourage new growth and better air circulation. This helps maintain the health and productivity of your pink blueberry bush. Protect young plants from extreme cold during winter, especially in the lower end of their hardiness zone, with mulch or frost cloth. This Vaccinium Rabbiteye is a hardy choice for many gardeners.

Size & Details

This pink lemonade blueberry plant is a live starter plant, typically measuring 6-8 inches tall upon arrival. It comes rooted in a shipping pot, ready for transplanting into your garden or a larger container. As a rabbiteye variety, it is known for its vigorous growth and can reach a mature height of 4-6 feet with a similar spread, forming a productive and attractive fruit bush. The growth rate is moderate, and you can expect your first significant harvest within 2-3 years, with increasing yields as the plant matures. Ensure adequate space for its mature size when planting. This edible fruit plant will be a delightful and unique addition to your home orchard or landscape.

Frequently Asked Questions

• Q: How big does this plant get? A: The pink lemonade blueberry plant typically grows to a mature height of 4-6 feet and can spread similarly. It’s a medium-sized fruit bush that fits well in most garden settings or large containers.
• Q: What size pot does it come in? A: This live plant is shipped rooted in a starter shipping pot, usually a 2-4 inch nursery pot, suitable for safe transport and immediate transplanting upon arrival.
• Q: Is this an indoor or outdoor plant? A: The pink lemonade blueberry plant is primarily an outdoor fruit bush. While it can be started indoors in controlled conditions, it requires outdoor exposure to thrive, pollinate, and produce fruit effectively.
• Q: How much sunlight does it need? A: This rabbiteye blueberry plant requires full sun, meaning at least 6-8 hours of direct sunlight daily, for optimal growth and fruit production.
• Q: Is this plant easy to care for? A: Yes, the ‘Pink Lemonade’ blueberry is considered relatively easy to care for, especially if its basic needs for acidic, well-draining soil and consistent moisture are met. It’s a great choice for those new to growing fruit.
• Q: What condition will it arrive in? A: Your pink lemonade blueberry plant will arrive as a healthy, established starter plant, carefully packaged to ensure its safe journey. It will be rooted and ready for planting.
• Q: Is it shipped in soil? A: Yes, the plant is shipped with its roots in soil within a starter pot to maintain hydration and minimize transplant shock.
• Q: When is the best time to plant? A: The best time to plant your pink blueberry bush is in early spring or fall, allowing the roots to establish before extreme temperatures.
• Q: Will it survive winter in my zone? A: This Vaccinium Rabbiteye variety is typically hardy in USDA Zones 5-9. It is deciduous and will lose its leaves in winter, but the plant itself remains dormant and will regrow in spring.
• Q: Is this edible fruit plant self-pollinating? A: While the ‘Pink Lemonade’ blueberry is technically self-pollinating, planting another rabbiteye variety nearby (such as Brightwell or Climax) will significantly improve pollination and result in larger, more abundant harvests.