I decided on a lark to just plant two blueberry plants (Bluecrop
and Northland) in the ground in amended soil to get experience this year before
planting ~12 more next spring in raised beds. I do not plan on
getting a soil test on the soil for these (I will for the raised beds); I want
to try some problem solving.

I removed between 8” to a foot of native soil from an 8’ X 4’
area and tilled in some local peat and compost into the bottom of the hole. I
then backfilled with 1/3 peat, 1/3 compost and 1/3 half-n-half mix of sandy
loam and original topsoil.

The Northland I bought looked terrible, leaves were yellow and
red along the edges and the new growth was a uniform burgundy and it was a bit
root bound. The Bluecrop at another nursery looked healthy. I
planted both and watered them in with some hydrolyzed fish emulsion and seaweed
(Neptunes Harvest). The VERY NEXT DAY after planting the newer
growth on the healthy Bluecrop and a few older leaves on the end of one branch
started to yellow. Two days in I decided to do a foliar feed with a mixture of
chelated iron, kelp, fish emulsion and humic and fluvic acid dissolved in
distilled water. Later that day the sick Northland started to show
really green veins in the leaves and one day later whole leaves are starting to
green up. I’ve seen no difference in the Bluecrop. I’m
assuming that I’m dealing with an iron deficiency but I’m confused as to the
speed with which it happened to the healthy plant. Here’s my first question:

(1) I watered the plant in
with my city water, which is very alkaline. Could this be the reason
for such a quick decline? Even after two days of rain we had
afterward? Can a soil ph problem also cause such a quick response - the roots
of the healthy plant are still contained in the medium that had supported it so
well up until planting? Could this simply be transplant shock even though the
roots were well contained in the pot and relatively undisturbed?

As for what I was thinking of doing, I’ve got all the amendments
I mentioned in my foliar spray mix above, soil sulfur, ammonium sulfate, Espoma
Holleytone, and some granular iron supplement (Ironite). I have some
battery acid for amending water. At the very least, I’m thinking I
should water with acidic water and fertilize. So my other questions
are:

(2) Should I adjust the water to be more acidic than 4.0-5.0.
And if so, how far can I go w/o damaging the plant

(3) A quick shot of AS (maybe 1/2 tsp to gal.) or slow Holleytone

(4) Any thoughts on more iron supplements and adding a cup
or two of sulfur to soil (I know it takes time to work) or just wait n see of
the above two course of action fixes things. Also, if I add this
stuff, should I do it with the above-mentioned courses of action or do it in
stages….

On a related note, since the leaves on the Northland have
started to green, I’ve noticed that what looked like red edges are more like
red dots so I think I have a fungus. I’ve got some Daconil fungicide. I’ve
had it for a while, don’t know what the shelf life is and there are no
directions for berry plants. Anyone give me some advice as to whether/how I
should use it or if there’s a better way.