[DopeyAlex]

Hey all,

I've got 11 Blueberry bushes, 3 from last year and 8 I got about a month ago. They have all been treated the same way ie. watering/planted in ericaceous soil.

The problem is, a few of the buds on the 8 bushes which I got recently, have started to die.

I havn't really watered them since I potted them up a month ago, but I gave them a very good soaking then and they are still moist. So mabey they are too wet???

The othering this the greenhouse thems vary from 3C-37C (night/day). Could this be a factor???

Some pics:

1st pic shows original 3 bushes, with no dead buds and look healthy
2nd pic shows the 8 new bushes
3/4/5th pics show some of the dead buds on the 8 new bushes.

Thank a lot,

Alex

[Kleftiwallah]

It looks like there is an assortment of troubles.  A bit of frost nip, underwatering and I don't like the look of that dark patch on the stem branch join in the final 'photo.  That one looks like my tomatoes last year, just before they pegged it

Are they in ericatious compost?  I have only one plant I put in back end of last year and it looks far better than yours with dark green and crimson leaves (a different variety perhaps).  Not bragging, just stating a fact.  You have my sympathies.   Cheers,   Tony

[JayG]

It is possible to over-water almost anything, but as long as they have not dried out at any point (and hopefully were watered with rainwater, especially if your tap water is "hard") it probably isn't that.

Why are they in a greenhouse? Blueberries are not just hardy, they need exposure to frosts in the dormant season to stimulate them to flower and set fruit.

The older plants will have had a bit more in reserve than the new ones so will have fared better; they all need to be rescued from the greenhouse and put outside IMHO (just take the usual hardening-off precautions if night temperatures are particularly low for the next week or so.)

[Lardman]

   Mine dont look anywhere near as healthy !

Im also getting some die back at the extremes, I had put it down to a bit of frost damage perhaps I should be more concerned ?

[Trillium]

The last place blueberries should be in is the greenhouse, especially with such radical fluctuations in temps. They're cold weather lovers (just like peas) and will do better at a more steady temp range - outside.

They're basically bog loving plants so regular watering in pots is necessary, just don't leave them sitting in puddles. Rainwater is best as its not as alkaline as tap water. And they don't like the direct glare of greenhouse light. In the wild, you usually find them under or near trees so some dappled shade is more to their liking.

[realfood]

It is far too hot for them in the greenhouse.

[bigben]

They look in better shape than the three I planted out in October. They are just starting to show some buds and one only has about two so I doubt I will get anything from it this year.

[JayG]

They look in better shape than the three I planted out in October. They are just starting to show some buds and one only has about two so I doubt I will get anything from it this year.

At least they are still alive! As long as they have been planted in the right growing medium and any watering was done with rainwater they'll be fine! They don't grow very fast so you can't expect much for a few years but they will definitely do better if they are outside rather than indoors. 

[DopeyAlex]

Thanks for all the replies everyone.

I will start hardening them off tomorrow for the next week and get them out into the fruit cage.

And yes they are all in ericaceous soil. They have all be watered about 85% rainwater since I've had them. However, this summer with soo many blueberry plants, I worry that I wont have enough rainwater for them all. But I do have an RO machine under my kitchen sink (produces purified water). Would this be ok???

Cheers, Alex

[viettaclark]

I had a telephone conversation with a nurseryman (Ken Muir's son I think) today and he gave me some tips about blueberries.
Most I was aware of but he did tell me to snip off any brown tips to branches pronto because they don't use pesticides on flowering fruit plants and there is a virus that will spread along the branch quickly.
Anyone know anything about this?
Not trying to make you paranoid.........

[fatcat1955]

RO water is basically 100% pure with all trace elements taken out (even fish cannot live in it) You will need to mix it with the rain water or add a plant tonic to it.

[Lardman]

Spent a little while Googling this morning , now I'm convinced my blueberry plants all have bubonic plague.

This is the sort of die back Im getting, (poor camera phone Im afraid) I've cut back into the stem just above the last last green bud on the stem.

Looking st the cuttings theres a  brittle ?dead? brown core running in the middle as if they're dying from the inside out.


 

[JohnB47]

Spent a little while Googling this morning , now I'm convinced my blueberry plants all have bubonic plague.

This is the sort of die back Im getting, (poor camera phone Im afraid) I've cut back into the stem just above the last last green bud on the stem.

Looking st the cuttings theres a  brittle ?dead? brown core running in the middle as if they're dying from the inside out.

Not much to add to others comments but my plants had the odd stem like yours - mine were kept for 18 months against my south facing kitchen wall, rain hail or shine. I just cut them back to the first outward facing bud beneath the brown section. We'll probably never know what causes this but my guess is frost damage.

[Kleftiwallah]

I'd like someone to tell me the difference between Blueberry, blaeberry and  billberry. ! ! ! !    Cheers,,   Tony.

[Nobbie]

I'd like someone to tell me the difference between Blueberry, blaeberry and  billberry. ! ! ! !    Cheers,,   Tony.

Bilberrys are found wild in the UK and are very small berries a bit like blueberries. I often see them in autumn when walking in the lake district. Hardly worth picking though as they're so small.