[SarahB]

About 3 weeks ago I bought some blueberry bushes (Ozark blue) and currant bushes from a local nursery.  I moved them outside about a week ago because the currants were flowering and the pollination was patchy.  The plants have been outside ever since.  It's not been too hot, and we've had a couple of good doses of rain (it was torrential last weekend).

I've got to be honest, I've not checked on them much in the last week, went out there yesterday and a lot of the young leaves on the blueberries have flushed pinky red.     Otherwise they look fine; they're not dried up or shrivelled, don't appear to be infected with anything or to have been attacked by anything.  It's similar to the small amount of red flush on the currant leaves (which I've seen before) and, strangely, on the young growth on our beech hedge.  Where the two blueberry plants were close together, the 'protected' new leaves are still pale green; older growth is dark green and fine.

I'm wondering what's caused this, and how much of a problem it is.  I put them outside thinking they'd be hardy, and I don't think the temperatures have fallen too low.  It has been dry during the week, but the plants are in a tray.  They're still in the ericaceous compost they came in from the nursery.  We have had some windy weather - it was quite windy just after I put them out, so I put up some wind break for them - but I'm not sure it's this because the new growth doesn't feel dried out.  They don't look scorched, but could they have had too much sun?  Or should I just be blaming it on the Iceland volcano?   

[Trillium]

The pinky flush on the leaves is merely a natural reaction to cold weather and doesn't affect growth at all. Once it warms up again, you'll find they turn green. Same with the berries - they start out pal and pinky and turn blue on maturity.

[SarahB]

Thanks for the quick reply, Trillium - that's a relief!    They look quite pretty, in a worrying kind of way!    

[paintedlady]

it'll give you an indication of the lovely autumn colours you can expect later in the year    Quite spectacular