There is a lot of good information in this thread..... Kansas, I would not depend on the neighbor saying you have acidic soil have it tested or amend the soil anyway as getting the soil too acid is much better than too alkaline. Most BB problems are caused by a too high PH but as Harvestman said you can grow a BB in higher PH soil and have it happy if you make sure the plant can get iron. A lot of the nurseries follow that line of thinking and that is why as one of the posters stated they tested the plants soil right from a nursery and it was more toward neutral. The only trouble with that is people will not continue to care for the plant as it was at the nursery where they spray the plants with the nutrients they need. Home gardeners are more likely to simply wait until problems arise where the plant shows it is not happy then treat it...sometimes guessing wrong and making things worse. It seems to me to be a dumb way to handle the plants......give them what they want and plant them right the first time and then you will not be chasing your tail and causing the plant to constantly cycle between happy and unhappy. One other issue is what is the soil like, what is it's texture? The BB do not like soil that is too heavy or compact. Because you state the other plant looks healthy I am leaning toward a soil problem not a PH problem. If the PH was wrong and you were not giving it supplemental iron it would not look happy. Too heavy of soil can cause what you are stating. Salt in the water can also cause what you are stating...here people will have problems similar to what you are stating and come to find out they were watering with water softened water. It tends to stunt the growth of plants and just kills the plants vigor the same way compacted or heavy soils can. If a BB especially a young BB is not growing at least 12" a year in zone 6 the plant is unhappy. A young plant should also be putting out new canes from the base and if not it is not happy. In warmer climates 2 feet of growth should be the minimum growth per year with proper care. The leaves on the plant are another indicator as you should on a young plant see the size of the leaf getting larger. If you could post a picture of the surviving plant that would help a lot as while it might look great compared to the dying ones it could help with a diagnosis. Contrary to popular opinion BB are very easy to grow....just plant them the right way when you bring them home. The young plants are much more sensitive so do it right the first time and when the plant is older it is far more forgiving.

What fruitnut suggests has worked very well for me. I first acidified my potting soil (1/2 peat compost and 1/2 azaella, camellia mix) with about 1/2 cup of soil sulfer (large pots). I then planted, taking care to break up the root ball (apparently very important, as they can have root ball shock if you dont' do this). I watered in carefully, then set my drips. I checked the pH for the next couple of weeks every day. I had to adjust my pH down a wee bit, and I did this with a few tablespoons of ammonium sulfate diluted in a couple of gallons of water. I made sure the pH of the acidified water was about 4, since I needed to pull down the pH a bit. That did the trick and they have been doing extremely well ever since. I did check the pH about 3 or 4 weeks ago, and it was still around 4.5 to 5.0 per pot. So, they're happy campers and I'll even get some fruit this year. After the fruit is off, I'll pinch back like what fruitnut has done to keep the tallness down, and get them to bush out a bit, especially my more leggy blueberries. Patty S.

I'm assuming maples don't drop a lot of junk other than in the fall? ===>>> you almost made me cry on that one .. i was laughing so hard .... seed drop in spring.. the dam-ned helicopters ... is a curse worthy of an 8th plague.. not to mention the 8 or 10 billion seedlings ... i suppose it might matter what kind of maple.. but all the generic ones i have dealt with are problematic at best .... maybe if you find a sterile one .... then you said: This patch of yard gets sun from about 10 am to 7pm and it so hot and dry that I have a hard time getting grass to live through the summer. again.. based on those i have dealt with ... most maple will not support vigorous grass under them .... and the pic below shows why.. they are extremely shallow rooted ... and in 20 years or so.. you will be bouncing over those roots with the lawn mower ... it is an understatement to say I HATE MAPLES ... lol.. like most peeps here will testify .. can i have an amen.. lol ... but that is because i garden under trees ... and maples and a few others are the bane of growing just about anything ... now.. whether or not these things will happen in your lifetime.. is the key ... as most of my problems are from mature trees that were on the property when i moved in .... whether you will be there is 20 to 40 years.. when the real problems start .... well that is for you to answer ... my fallback.. in the choice of trees... is ALWAYS oak ... once they get going.. they can grow 3 to 5 feet per year... just under what a maple can do .... and frankly.. no matter what tree you opt for.. there will be a downside ... acorns.. helicopters.. fruit.. nuts .... barren soil underneath .. etc .... so it will all come down to simply your best choice... as i doubt you will ever find the 'perfect' tree ... IMHO ... the key to clay is simply the planting procedure.. allowing them to get established.. and once they do. they are fully capable of putting their roots where they want them ... for the most part ... good luck ken

any chance at a pic?