Why are My Blueberry leaves Turning Red? 5 Reasons
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 28 ก.ย. 2024
- In today’s episode we will be covering five reasons why your blueberry plants might be having their leaves turn red. Hopefully it helps! Happy gardening.
Get Trifecta here: migardener.com...
Temperature fluctuation - Michigan in particular has gone from 90 to 40 this week.
Water - The roots of the plant should be able to accept lack of water as it matures and adapts, but it wants damp soil to uptake nutrients
Acidity - Blueberries need acidic soil
Lack of nutrients - Amend your soil
Pests cause stress - Aphids and Spider mites remove sap from leaves
Thanks!
Thanks for this! No offense to the guy in the video, but if I had to hear the words "newly planted plant" one more time I think my head would have exploded. I wasn't even 2 minutes into the video!
@@LtMashumaro very true, MIGardener is just way way way to wordy, he could cut his videos to 1/3rd and be more effective. But perhaps some people learn better with being told 3x how to do something. NOt me.
I wrote in a few weeks ago asking the very same question. I had just planted 10 blueberry bushes and all the leaves were red. I did everything right with the soil, and still, the leaves turned red. I didnt realize until a bit later that it was due to the weather. We had some temps in the mid 30's right around the time I had written in, and I'm happy to say that as the weather has gotten warmer, the leaves have all turned a vibrant green and the plants are flourishing. All but 2 of them are blooming and some of the bushes already have some small blueberries on them, which is pretty good for plants that young. I didnt think lower temperatures would affect blueberries so much because they are so cold hearty, but then I thought about it, and it makes perfect sense. Blueberries can withstand very cold temperatures in the winter when they are dormant and have no leaves, but once the leaves form and the roots pump water to them, that water can freeze and burst the cells within the plant, causing them to die. Anyway, thanks for the video, I'm looking forward to many more. Maybe you could do one about honeyberries.
Luke you are incredibly wise & knowledgeable way beyond many at your age, I can only imagine how much more knowledge you will acquire by the time you are older. Thanks for sharing blueberry tips, it's been a dream of mine to grow them.
Nothing in my garden quite thrilled me as much this spring as when the blueberries I planted last fall started getting their new leaves and growing. Glad to know what to look for. I have noticed quite a difference overall since I fertilized them. I did go to a lot of trouble for their soil, digging out a deep and wide hole and layering peat, coconut coir, composted soil, the original soil and a little bit of sand until the hole was slightly heaped. It seems to have worked. They also have downspout water coming down only a few feet away.
My blueberry leaves are red and this video came at a great time. Thanks! Time to break out the soil testing kit and see what's up
Thank you for this. I think I have been too worried about the soil pH and watering to where I have overdone both. Because it was only a few leaves turning red and after I started "treating' it, it got worse. I'm glad you mentioned this as a possibility in the video. I'm going to try to be more hands-off and see what it does...
I think you are a mind reader. I was looking at my blueberry bushes last night that I planted a few weeks ago and was getting worried that the leaves were turning red. Then poof! You posted about this very subject! Thank you for your words of wisdom!
Same here, but I noticed after each cold night there were more burgundy and red leaves eventhough I covered them during the frost.
Thanks, Luke. Your timing is impeccable! I just bought a blueberry plant from TSC and noticed the leaves are turning red. Take care!
Glad to see you didn’t get sucked up by that tornado
Thanks for this. I just planted 3 blueberry bushes.
Perfect timing on this video. I noticed my blueberry leaves had a reddish tint to them yesterday. Here in Missouri we have had quite a temperature change. My blueberry bushes were planted 3 weeks ago in higher Temps. Thank you Luke for another great video. I will be on the lookout for "webby webs"!😂
I am so fortunate to come across this, 1 established blueberry and six new ones. Temperature changes for sure.
Y'all are the absolute best! Y'all's seeds are great and all the info Y'all share with us is amazing.
Blessings, julie
Impeccable timing. Also webby webs is a technical term.
You know it! ;)
Can you please do a video on pruning the blueberry canes and when
I swear I just noticed the leaves on my blueberry bush turning red yesterday and this video popped up lol. Thank You!
I bought 4 young blueberry bushes from Costco and by the time I could plant them due to snow and freezing weather, three of them died right after I put them in pots. The fourth looks pretty good.
Great video. I wish you would have given some good examples you may use for pesticides. It's hard for new gardeners to know whats right for certain plants. This was however great for this time. My leaves did turn a bit red. I thought I had everything right. Well turns out it was water issue. The soil to me was still so moist. I watered it and my leaves are all green again. Omg a simple fix but I better watch the watering for sure. I love your videos! So informative and love how you explain in simple terms.
Mine just got a bit of a red tinge here and there, after this huge temperature drop here in michigan we've had. I just noticed it yesterday, and then you posted this! Thank you!
I bought a hundred blueberry plants ( From Michigan actually) a year ago and the leaves came on they were red from the beginning. I gave them a couple rounds of epsom salt and they greened up and are fine now.
Of course I fish "emulsioned" them at the same time so that might have been the bigger help.
Perfect Timing!!!
We had bareroot that already broke dormancy and it was too cold so I potted them. Yes, we had extreme heat a couple weeks ago and I said they need to get planted. Then it turned really cold, Again! I covered them, but not all cooler nights. This is first time I've grown them. I too thought, hey, who takes care of them in the wild? But, as you said, those are established plants. I added a cup of acidifier, peat and some compost. I didn't want to grow in pots as they wouldn't make it through the winter and I'm not babysitting pots all winter zone 5.
I just hope that what I read about oak and cedar areas that they are acidic and the BBs will thrive as long as I can keep them moist. I hope our drought is going away as we have rain once again.
So yes, I was wondering about those red leaves and I think it may be the cold. I've read the roots of BBs are only about 6 inches and spread horizontally so I prepped the soil in a larger area at least 6 inches.
Thanks for the tips and I'll have to check PH.
We had frost couple night ago and another of 36.5°F that was suppose to be upper 40s. So yes, a few more burgundy colors appeared. The Heat is on in a couple days and everything should explode😁
Thank you very much! I bought a blueberry bush, for five dollars, from Home Depot last year. After coming out dormancy this spring, it started off the year by sending up two branches, then some critter digging in the pot broke one of them. I put a cage and netting around it, and the other branch is doing really well, but the leaves have been turning red.
I also planted three apple seeds from my McIntosh tree, just to see what kind I get, they're only up a few inches so far, but their leaves have been turning colors as well.
Thanks Luke, for the great tips. Always good to hear what should and shouldn't be done. My biggest problem with blueberries has been birds. Lol
Fantastic blueberry gardening tips! Greetings from Missouri. We have two young blueberry plants in our garden. This spring we hit temps of 90°F and than dropped down to 40°F again. This week we have had alot of rain. Going to give them more coffee grounds today. Thank you ♡
Good information. Can you start a cutting by putting a stem in rooting hormone? If so, when is the best time to do this.
Take softwood cuttings (4 inches to 5 inches long) in late spring from the tips of the current season’s growth, when stems kinda woody tissue but still flexible and terminal leaves are half-grown to almost mature. Cuttings taken too early (terminal leaves very succulent, stems very flexible) may readily wilt. Cuttings taken too late (mature leaves, second flush of growth initiated), may poorly root. Rooting usually is more successful when cuttings are taken from the first flush of spring growth. However, cuttings can be collected from growth flushes occurring later in the growing season.
Take cuttings from the upper part of the mother plant. Use sharp, clean pruning shears or knives disinfected in a solution of 1 part household bleach to 5 parts water. Remove lower leaves leaving two or three terminal leaves. Don’t allow cuttings to dry; keep them moist and cool after collection. Place cuttings in the propagation bed, under mist, as soon as possible at a depth of one-half to two-thirds of their length.
Hardwood cuttings are taken during the dormant season after sufficient chilling has occurred, usually late January through February. Collect strong, healthy shoots or “whips” (usually 12 inches to 36 inches long) that grew the previous summer. Divide these “whips” into sections 5 inches to 6 inches long with a sharp knife or a bench saw with a fine blade. If the terminal of the shoot contains flower buds, remove the flower buds or discard the tip.
Insert cuttings into the propagation medium from one-half to two-thirds of their length with one shoot bud exposed. Keep the propagation beds moist, but be careful not to use too much water. Water hardwood cuttings with a sprinkler until they start growing leaves, then mist-water the cuttings until they are rooted.
After cuttings are rooted, apply a dilute complete liquid fertilizer weekly. Plants can remain in the propagation bed until winter, when they should be transplanted into pots or nursery beds and held them for one year. The plants should be large enough for field planting the next winter.
Propagation beds need to be well-drained, under shade cloth (40 percent to 70 percent shade), and have adequate ventilation. Avoid excessive wind movement that may interfere with mist control.
Propagation Media - A medium that retains moisture well but allows aeration is necessary. Media containing various propagation mixtures of coarse sand, ground pine bark, perlite, sawdust, and peat moss have proven satisfactory. A good rooting medium recipe is a mixtures of coarse sand, ground pine bark, and peat moss (1:1:1) or perlite and peat moss (1:1).
References:
Braswell, John H. Establishment and Maintenance of Blueberries.
Krewer, Gerard and Bill Cline. Bluberry Propagation Suggestions.
Woow- Just what I needed! My blueberries bush are new and started well, even flowering and Bamm, leaves started turning red. This is helpful because we had a huge temperature spike so this could be the issue. I will keep an eye on it and hopefully, they turn back to green soon. Thanks for the video.
Perfect timing. Several of my blueberry plants have red leaves. We have wild temp changes lately.
Mine are greenish yellow right now. I fed it coffee and have watered it. Honestly i'm glad it came back this year.
I have three from you and they are doing great. I was afraid one was not going to do anything at all but it just started showing growth! So excited. I have them in pots for now.
Very good info I had problems with first year bush my blueberries turned brown when they saw very hot weather right after spring and leaves turned brown welted I was surprised
Thank you Luke.🙂
I made blueberry jam for the first time last year. Now I want blueberry bushes.😊
Blessings! 💜
Once again the timing of this video is impeccable. I ordered a blueberry plant from you and the leaves are a bit red. I thought it was normal since I've never grown a blueberry bush before.
Same! Except I rescued mine a couple months ago from Meijer. It was so sad, and really struggling. Wilted, shriveled… you know the look I’m sure. I kept it in its bag for a couple weeks, giving it sunlight and water, light nutrients. I decide to move it to a pot outside (it really is a tiny thing) and I discover it has next to no roots 😱 no wonder it was struggling! All seems well now, it’s has some new growth. Then a couple weeks ago I notice it’s new leaves turning red-ish 🧐 but when thinking about it I figured it’s normal bcuz every time I’ve stumbled upon a blueberry bush in the woods…. It had some red-ish leaves 🤷♀️
Buy a blueberry plant from a local grower and have it be of decent enough size. Use an acid enhancing fertilizer and it'll turn those red leaves green in no time. I had red leaves and smaller growth last year and used regular fertilizer. I added Epoma's Hollytone Fertilizer and the bushes are growing a lot better and I see little to no red leaves, only on a few tips of leaves.
@@krystalfukinmarie757hows the plant doing now , I’ve just bought my 1st 2plants one has red leaves they’re only small plants yet. Thank you
@@bernadettesullivan29 it’s middle of winter so it’s dormant right now, but I think it’s okay! It hadn’t grown much so I repotted it and brought it in for the winter, I wasn’t sure if it would survive being so small but it had a full pot of roots which I was happy to see! I’ll move it back outside in the spring, and that will probably be when I find out if it’s dormant or dead 😅
@@krystalfukinmarie757 good luck 🍀 I hope it’s dormant thanks for your fast reply 🙂
Wow ive always wondered why mine had red tint to leaves im in east tx we definitely get temperature swings here lol 😆 thanks for info again!!
You are exactly right, I planted Blueberries for the first time this year. I live in Florida so the soil is SAND, I knew amendments would be needed. At first I had red leaves, got scared and through the kitchen sink at them! Happy to say most leaves are green but still have new leaves that come out red. I made a mistake and got the cart before the horse LOL I planted the blueberries than put sulfur pellets in, because sulfur pellets take a while, I added liquid sulfur to apply at 2 week intervals until I see a difference! Than I added compost, I read somewhere compost raises the soil PH Do I add more sulfur or is it a magnesium deficiency? ... so confused It was a mess "I didn't know at all what I was doing! Thank you for making this video, I found it a little to late but still very informative! It's been 3 month and my plants are still alive with little growth and every new leaf has red.. ❤🙏
Yea I had red leaves on my alapaha blueberry plant last season and the leaves dropped and it eventually died despite more watering and trying to add compost, and azalea fertilizer . I have re purchased blueberry plants and kept them in a grow bag and they are doing much better.
Thank you great information. This is my first year growing blueberries. I was scared when I walked and saw that my blueberries were changing colors quickly.
Perfect timing. I just got mine from Stark brothers and they were showing signs stress. But will get it fixed up based upon your help.
The extreme heat and cold has done some strange color changes on tulips and flowering crab Apple trees. The tulips I bought were to be hot pink and turned out a strange dull salmon and another person reported their crab Apple that is normally bright pink was bright white this year. All from extreme heat.
Thanks so much Luke for the info on blueberry plants! Mine are 2 to 3 yrs in the ground. Did use the fertilizer given from the nursery where I bought them. Doing much better this year. Hoping to get more than a handful of berries than last yr from 7 different varieties I've got. Weather has been an issue here to PNW❤
Not sure if you read comments or not. It would be great to get suggestions on organic, compost type things rather than store bought fertilizers etc. I cant buy a bunch of stuff n trying to use grass, kitchen waste scraps etc for compost.
I heard someone else say that blueberries did not like wet conditions. I listened to them. Guess that is why they have not given me very many berries. Will start watering during dry periods and mulch them again.
This was one of your best episodes ever!!! Thank you!!
Great advice. I was wondering why they turned red. First year plants. I thought maybe they were supposed look like that lol
One thing I disagree on though is the needles. Spruce and pine needles contain nutrition and are acidic. They will lower the pH when they break down. Not a lot of course, they are just needles after all.
Its been scientifically proven they have no effect on the soil ph. its a myth. Easily found on YT.
Michigan here. Mine are in containers since last year. Also issue with a rabbit partaking in the plants. I have fertilized. I keep in full sun.
YES! Noticed my blueberry leaves were turning red today.
I hadn't considered the temperature change here in Wisconsin... same as yours, in the 90's and then a week in the 40's at night.
Impeccable timing. Thanks!
I was just wondering about this today. Totally makes sense.
Moles tunnel under mine leving them dryer than you think they are . I even had a pear tree topple over with so many mole holes underneath ! . The trouble is moles love prepared soil . Still theres nothing more mysterious than lying down in the garden and hearing some scrape scrape noises then magically a mud volcano erupts nearby !
I've grown a blueberry from seed, four months old about 30cm now and is full of yellow flowers!
Love how he just chuckles at webby webs. "I'm just a guy with a garden." Awesome personality! Love it
Thanks for this excellent video! I learned things about blueberries that I never knew!
Amazing timing! We have had extreme temperature swings here in Maine in May. 37 degrees Fahrenheit at night and a few 80 and 90 degree days in the same week. My first year blueberries did not like that at all but are recovering now after two weeks of cool, seasonable temperatures.
"When I say webby webs, I mean webby webs".....I'm putting that on a t-shirt, lol. Great video Luke; I was just having this issue the other day, thanks for the tips.
Webby Webs!!! Love it!!! Thanks Luke for your always-awesome videos, easy to understand gardening information AND your humor!
i had problems growing blueberry plants so i put in a small koi pond now the soil near the plant is better for it
I love your videos, thank you. You always have the answer to what I need
Always great information
If its later in the season, then stress of the seasons changing is the reason they all can do it. If it has been planted for over a full year it should no longer change color, unless it is normal for the breed. I come from an area in southeast alaska where the island is covered with blueberries and huckleberries, and the soil is naturally wet year round, they love water. The cousin of blueberries is cranberries, and those also love to grow out of the sides of bogs
I always thought that was supposed to happen, they're so pretty when they're pink/red . Whooooops.
thank you for this! gave more acidic fertilizer and they bounce right back!
Awesome. Been having same issue with some. I'd still eagerly hear from you any thoughts of how to create acidic soil in a "no buy/no sell" kinda way. Selfsustainable or however. What can I plant to compost to create acidic compost perhaps?
Used Coffee grounds, pureed citrus peels added to soil around plants helped mine.
wow, looking like a real honey bun!
My very young Serviceberry Tree leaves are solid red! Yikes! Zone 5, 4/23 low temps at night still.
Thanks Luke - good information.
When I’m treating blueberry bushes with soil acidifier, how often should I be applying it? Is it a weekly thing? Monthly?
Do a quarterly soil test to determine if you need to add acidifiers. It's not healthy for the plant to dramatically change the soil pH, blueberries need a pH between 4.5-5.5.
I test and acidify my blueberries once each spring. If you sprinkle some pelleted sulfur, the pellets may take most of the year to dissolve - which is a good thing. I may use 1/4 pound of the pellets around each large blueberry plant, around the dripline; not touching the stem.
In the ground, use every 3 -6 months, depending on type of soil. In containers, 1-3 months. Please test ph. You can also use used Coffee grounds worked in soil, it helps.
Thank you for this video. I do have a question. I just planted my blueberry bush, how long do I wait to step in and try to help it?
This is great timing. Thanks for the information.
Hope it helped Max!
How did you know my new blueberry bush turned red? THANK YOU!
Thanks for this, perfect timing
Would it be helpful to move my blueberries near my arborvitae? Never mind! You answered my question!
Perfect timing the menards blueberry plant is a little red I’m actually going to try hard this year.
My favorite quote: “I’m not a scientist just a guy with a garden” 😂
Thank you Luke!
So for my own Blueberry (pink lemonade) it's the suckers that have a pinkish hue while very few of the older leaves are still mostly green with VERY slight reddish tips! We had about a full week of 70+ sunny weather and we dropped down to 55-60 degree weather and it's now cloudy and a bit rainy currently... Could that've been the cause? During the warm week I had also re-potted my blueberry to a bigger pot. So I'm not sure if that could've been a factor too.
The leaves are still VERY healthy looking though aside from the pink hues on the suckers.
Thank you for this video! It's very helpful for me to keep my eye out since this is my first year planting blueberry bushes. Would the same thing apply to raspberry plants as well?
hmm just bought a new one, and it had some red leaves. Thought I would leave it in a larger moveable pot, but will add some peat moss
do red leaves mean it might go dormant? So should we just let the plant adjust to weather changes?
This is crazy, I literally bought a blueberry about 2 weeks ago. I left it in the greenhouse for the first week then put outside for 1 night and all the leaves turned red, I put back In the greenhouse and the next day it was fully back to green
Can diluted apple cider vinegar can also help to decrease the pH level as a home remedy?
One of the last things I need to do is do is check my pH.. my leaves have been red since I planted/transplanted my 6 blueberry plants 3 weeks ago.. 1 plant has bloomed. The other 2 I had that had blooms on them, the blooms just died. I really don't wanna start my plants over. 😢
My blueberries looked beautiful this spring should of left them alone but I fertilized them with water soluble plant food within a week they turned red
My blueberry leaves turned very dark blue and dried up?? I have a Jubille bush. Been a year since I planted.
Fertilized and added acid enhancer couple weeks before.
I just planted this year and mine are turning red. Only planted about a month and I’m in Michigan
Great information! I have a Blueberry plant that's a few years old and under a grow light indoors. It did develop some red leaves after a power outage the other day, so I'm thinking the lack of light may have stressed the plant out. Ironically it produced a sudden burst of new healthy green leaves today or yesterday. I did order some Trifecta Plus from you and Peat Moss from Tractor Supply so will try that too. It is long and leggy and I probably should have pruned it over the winter but couldn't bring myself to cut off branches with new leaves on them.
I'm curious if I cut them now and stick them in some soil if they will root and grow new plants that can pollinate with this plant later. I had another one that died after about a year and they were both producing berries soon after I bought them the first year but since the other died I have only gotten foliage from this remaining one.
Is it possible to get your soil TO acidic for blueberries? And will transplanting naturally stress a potted blueberry more than a bareroot?
I planted 3 blueberry plants from Walmart ( two different types) in peat moss and composted cow manure aged and checked the ph (7) added acidifier and mulched with pine needles. I live in ky. My plants are not growing at all. They are just little sticks. No growth at all. For about a month!
Your an awesome gardener !! Thank you for the info on blueberry plants
I wish this had been up a month or 2 ago. I had a couple of bare roots that didn't make it. I tried again and they all seem to be doing ok
how about an established plant 2-3 years in the ground and a random spring snow comes in and dumps 8 inches? This spring snow hit all our fruit trees.
❤❤ thanks or the info. Needed this advice!!
50 degree swing? That sounds like Michigan alright.
Snowing one day, at the beach the next.
I’ve just purchased a 2 year old nursery grown blueberry bush now it’s been planted in my pot and I’ve just noticed a went web now which pesticides would you recommend please and great video 👍
Thanks for the info. I have many types of blueberries but assumed the baby ones red leaves were just the type. I will try to be consistent with watering and see if it changes. Normally the older ones turn red in fall so I hadn’t been concerned.
Do you recommend anything for spider mites? I have them bad outdoors. It’s a rural area of Virginia.
My rhododendron also is affected by cold, hot changes
Thanks for the video! I have a few very young plants and I recently planted them in larger pots with sphagnum mulch and pine mulch. But the leaves are turning red. Is it okay to give fertilizer in this time of year?
Blueberry leaves may turn red in early spring due to cold weather, which causes an increase in anthocyanin synthesis. This coloration usually starts in the older parts of the plant and disappears when the weather warms up.
So I'm assuming by your verbiage "newly planted" is 2-3 years after planting and after that is when you should be truly concerned? My dwarf plants have been in for a year, were literally an inch tall (thanks to bunnies at the nursery) when I put them in. They have grown nicely and came back on red/yellow. I just wanted to confirm that I shouldn't truly worry until after next year
This year is the first time ive had troubles with my three plants. They were doing great all full of blossom and starting to fruit. Then the blossoms and fruits started turing Brown and falling off. Ive tried a few treatments but I honestly dont think any fruit is going to survive.
My Pink Lemonade Blueberry plant is pushing up red new growth. I thought it was normal until I seen this video
That was helpful, thank you.
Why my blueberries get more fruit but smaller and smaller each year? I am in Seattle WA