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Home Edible Landscape Plants Premier Blueberry Plant

  • Local Pickup Available at Advanced Nursery Growers | Limited Shipping Available on Select Plants — Contact Us Before Ordering

Premier rabbiteye blueberry plant with large ripe blue berries for sale in North Florida

Premier Blueberry Plant

Advanced Nursery Growers

$22.00

Premier Blueberry is a vigorous, early-season rabbiteye variety known for its large, flavorful berries and easy picking. The attractive blue fruit has good color, a small picking scar, and a pleasantly sweet blueberry flavor when allowed to ripen fully on the bush.

Premier begins ripening early in the rabbiteye season, often alongside or slightly ahead of Climax. Its upright growth and large berries make it an excellent choice for home orchards, edible landscapes, fresh eating, baking, freezing, jams, and preserves.

Plant Details

  • Plant Type: Deciduous fruiting shrub
  • Botanical Name: Vaccinium virgatum ‘Premier’
  • Former Botanical Name: Vaccinium ashei ‘Premier’
  • Blueberry Type: Rabbiteye
  • Mature Size: Approximately 6–10 feet tall and 5–8 feet wide when maintained through pruning; older unpruned plants may grow taller
  • Sun: Full sun for the best flowering, berry production, and sweetness
  • USDA Zones: 7–9
  • Chill Hours: Approximately 550 hours
  • Bloom Time: Early spring
  • Harvest Time: Early rabbiteye season, generally late May through June in North Florida, depending on winter and spring weather
  • Fruit: Medium-large to large blue berries with good color and a small picking scar
  • Flavor: Sweet with good traditional blueberry flavor
  • Texture: Moderately firm; best picked regularly when fully ripe
  • Pollination: Requires another compatible rabbiteye blueberry with overlapping bloom time
  • Soil: Acidic, moist but well-drained soil rich in organic matter
  • Preferred Soil pH: Approximately 4.0–5.5
  • Water: Keep evenly moist during establishment, flowering, and fruit development, but avoid waterlogged soil
  • Growth Habit: Vigorous and upright
  • Landscape Uses: Home orchards, edible landscapes, blueberry hedges, wildlife gardens, and pick-your-own plantings
  • ATTRACTS POLLINATORS: Spring flowers attract bees and other beneficial pollinators

Premier requires approximately 550 chill hours and produces medium-large to large fruit during the early rabbiteye season. The berries detach easily from the plant, making them especially enjoyable for hand picking.

Best Pollinator Partners

Premier should be planted near a different rabbiteye blueberry variety for dependable fruit set and larger berries.

The strongest recommended pollinator partners from our selection are:

  • Alapaha Blueberry
  • Austin Blueberry
  • Brightwell Blueberry

These three varieties are specifically recommended as pollinators for Premier because their flowering periods provide suitable overlap.

Climax Blueberry can also provide useful early-season overlap, and Premier is listed as a recommended pollinator for Climax. However, Alapaha, Austin, and Brightwell are the strongest documented choices for Premier.

Plant different varieties within approximately 50 feet of one another so bees can move easily between the flowers. Rabbiteye blueberries require cross-pollination from another rabbiteye cultivar and should not depend on a Southern Highbush variety for pollination.

North Florida Growing Note

Premier’s estimated 550-hour chilling requirement is a good match for many areas of North Florida and the Florida Panhandle, including the DeFuniak Springs area during most winters.

Because Premier is an early-blooming rabbiteye, open flowers and young berries may occasionally be damaged by a late winter or early spring freeze. Avoid planting in low areas where cold air settles. A slightly elevated location with good air circulation is preferable.

Premier can set a heavy crop while young, and some new canes may bend under the weight of the fruit. Light pruning and removing flowers during the first growing season will help the plant establish a stronger framework.

Blueberries require acidic soil with excellent drainage. UF/IFAS recommends a soil pH between approximately 4.0 and 5.5 and warns that prolonged water-saturated conditions can cause severe root damage. Pine bark or pine straw mulch helps conserve moisture, control weeds, and add organic matter.

Available primarily for local pickup at our nursery in DeFuniak Springs, Florida. Please contact us before ordering if shipping will be required.

Wholesale availability may be offered on select sizes and quantities. Please contact us for current inventory and wholesale information.

Advanced Nursery Growers
1911 McLeod Road
DeFuniak Springs, FL 32435
Call: 850-391-2228
Email: info@advancednurserygrowers.com

Collections: Berry Plants for North Florida | Blueberries, Blackberries & Edible Berry Plants, Blueberry Plants – All Varieties, Blueberry Plants – Rabbiteye Varieties, Edible Landscape Plants, Wildlife Planting & Habitat Trees

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