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I have a potted Sunshine Blueberry plant. I noticed suckers started appearing a few inches from the main trunk. Should I leave those suckers there or cut them off? I have read that suckers on big fruit trees don't produce good fruit. Is the same true for bushes like this Sunshine Blueberry?

The sucker is emerging from the dirt on the right:

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This is the whole plant:

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JoJo
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  • That's just a root sucker. It will become a new fruiting branch once mature. You don't have to cut it unless it's messing with the appearance in your opinion. – J. Musser Jun 12 '14 at 02:35

1 Answers1

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Unless you know you bought a specially grafted plant, blueberries grow on their own roots, which means the sucker problem doesn't happen. A sucker is a shoot that grows from below the graft point on a plant which has been grafted to a different rootstock; the sucker is a shoot from that rootstock, and therefore not desirable because it takes over from the grafted plant on top, above the graft, which you do want. In this case, the new shoots you're seeing are just fresh blueberry growth.

UPDATED ANSWER: in response to your comment, have a look at where its coming from, that shoot - its probably arising from the roots, because the roots have spread and grown and it's simply throwing up new growth because it can now it's got a larger pot.

Bamboo
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  • Mine was not grafted. When I bought it, it was just a few twigs in a 4'' pot. So what are the differences between the branches that emerge above ground versus this underground one? – JoJo Jun 11 '14 at 18:00
  • @Jojo You may just have buried the plant a little deeper when you potted it up, and that's why it appears it's coming from underground. I note the mulch on top - it might just be the depth of mulch making it seem 'underground'. – Bamboo Jun 11 '14 at 18:24
  • I potted it at the same level as it came in. The mulch you see is a shredded cedar mulch that is only placed in the outer perimeter. The new branch is emerging from a middle portion that is not covered by mulch. – JoJo Jun 11 '14 at 21:50
  • @JoJo, you've said its not grafted, so it still isn't a sucker - clear away the soil and bark and check exactly where its coming from if you like. – Bamboo Jun 12 '14 at 11:45