As part of the selenium-enrichment programme for a major UK retailer, Field Science has been trialling Se-enrichment of Blueberries in the South of England.
Blueberries are grown in acid soils and growers tend to use either Agro-Acid or sulphur to lower the pH. This presents a problem for Field Science as the preferred range of optimum nutrient availability for soil water pH is between 5.7 and 6.3 and the growers’ prefer to be nearer 4.5. In addition to this sulphur as an additive presents an entirely different issue – it is directly antagonistic to the availability of selenium to the plant, the aim of the trial!

However, Field Science overcame these issues and the results of this year’s trial were perfect with optimum uptake with the target enrichment level achieved for the retailer. They should be commercialised next year. Sweet!