A friend shared this with me, wondering what has happened. This is in North Vancouver. She says "In the past week (mostly since Saturday) one of my blueberry bushes has shriveled completely, leaves turned red. 4 others look unaffected." We have had a great deal of rain lately and she wondered if that would have anything to do with it but her other bushes are fine. Any ideas?
Oh, I'd like to see what others think -- but I suspect one of two things: fungal attack preventing movement of water within the plant (likeliest) or some underground organism having severely impacted the young roots.
If either of those, do you think it’s best to remove the bush so it doesn’t affect the other ones near it?
It is unlikely, that rain caused that. How long these blueberries have been growing there? If less than couple of years, then possibly bundled roots from not so careful planting. In case there are voles or water voles in your area, I'd suspected these critters. Grubs are less likely cause. Anyways, it could be useful to dig the plant out, check its roots to find the cause, and replant it carefully, if roots are vital enough. Simpler treatment, but without investigating the cause, would be just pruning this plant.
