blueberry leaves dying

[Billed]

hey folks I'm concerned

I have a row of 9 different kinds of blueberries I planted in the early spring of 2008 here in Nashville tn. They are planted in clay soil highly amended with peat moss and sand that is covered with landscape fabric and 2-3 inches of pine nuggets. I feed them a couple of times in early Spring with 15-15-15, ammonium sulfate, and garden sulfur. My bushes are in the 3 to 4 foot range. Our harvest this year was the best yet.

The leaves on my Bluejay bush just started dying in a section of the bush. At first I thought a branch had been broken, but it is spreading up the bush. the whole leave yellows and dies.

Two bushes away my Misty bush has started a similar problem, but in this case the leaves are dying from the edge toward the center, and it is more general all over the plant.

I sprayed those two bushes and the nuggets around them with Daconil and powered sulfur.

Can some one out there give some suggestions. Thanks Billed

[Hortman]

Hello Billed. Let’s see if we can solve this problem. How is the drainage in the soil?
Blueberries want moist, well-drained soil. They do not like standing water. If you are
getting standing water in those spots, the problem could be crown rot. Adding gypsum
and organic matter to the soil will help break up the clay and allow water to drain deeper.
Lack of water coupled with this heat could also have created the problem.

Have you checked for insects? They could be causing the problem by sucking the juices
of the plant.

Lastly, I would test the soil for pH and nutrients. Too low a pH is just as bad as too high a
pH. The nutrients get locked up and the plant can't take them up.

Good luck and keep me posted on their health.

[Billed]

Hortman thanks for the reply.

1. water I don't get any standing water, they are planted across a slight grade. The day before yesterday I gave them a good soaking. I do keep track of the rain and water when it is dry. It"s been hot here.

2. ph My ph is too high(about 6) and is why I am putting garden sulfur on every Spring. My understanding is that too much sulfur at once can kill roots, but that could be a myth. I also spray the leaves with Miracle-Grow for acid loving plants (miracid). I fertilize by pulling the pine nuggets back to the drip line, and spreading the fertilizer and sulfur on the landscape fabric, and redistributing the nuggets. I tried pulling the fabric back to work the additives into the soil, but there is a mass of hair roots right at the surface. I'm afraid the chemicals might burn them. Last month I was in Norfolk Va and went to a blueberry farm. Talked to the owner, he said to use powdered sulfur rather than garden sulfur. I'm trying it on a couple bushes, but not the ones that are in trouble now.

3. insects I haven't seen any and I have only 10 or 12 leaves on the 9 bushes with insect holes. That sure doesn't say it isn't insect damage. I sprayed them twice with bifenthrin before they started forming fruit. That's been a long while ago. Now that the harvest is done, maybe I should spray them again. Do you have any suggestions as to the insects I should be looking for.

I think I will water again tomorrow and spray with bifenthrin. What do you think?

Hortman thanks again for your response and consern. I will keep you posted and check back tomorrow


grateful,
Billed

[Moley]

Can you post some pictures?, sounds like Stem Blight a little.

[Billed]

Hey Moley,

YOU ARE RIGHT!!

I'm a man in the second half of his 60s and have needed to learn some more tech. I have already started looking around and saw that the site admin had the foresight to post instruction. I'm off to study and get the camera out.

Thanks for the push,

Billed