Hi, my newly planted blueberry leaf tips have turned brown, dried out and the leaves fell off afterwards. It's planted in a garden bed. I sprayed with Neem Oil as I thought it might be caused by bacteria or insect but the symptoms persist. I wonder if the soil could be the cause?

Hi Ben, this is a sign of stress, it could be caused by not enough water, too much water and poorly drained soils or too much fertiliser applied near the roots, it is unlikely to be caused by pests or disease. Blueberries can be very fussy plants and have a shallow root system, they require a free draining soil as they don't like their roots sitting in water, Auckland soils are mostly heavy clay so poorly drained. If you have heavy clay soils it is a good idea to dig a planting hole twice the diameter of the plants root ball and fill with a suitable planting mix such as Tui Citrus and Fruit mix or Tui Strawberry mix to improve drainage or plant into raised garden beds. Mulch around the plant in spring with a suitable mulch such as Tui Mulch & Feed or Pea Straw to help retain soil moisture and prevent the soil from drying out so quickly. Depending upon the weather, water regularly, it could be every second day, to help the plant get established. If you suspect you have applied too much fertiliser put the hose on the plant for 10-15 minutes to leach the fertiliser out of the soil. The plant should recover, regular applications of Tui Organic Seaweed will benefit the plant, apply weekly at a rate of 70mls per 9L watering can to stimulate new root growth to help the plant recover. If you have planted the blueberry in a pot, it will likely need more watering than it is currently receiving and make sure the pot is large enough (45-50cm) for the blueberry to grow into. Lianne.