Whether Copper sprays might help control any of the fungal diseases that can affect Blueberries depends on when it is used and what stage the disease is in.

For an organic grower the first step in disease, as well as insect pest, is the soil. What condition is the soil these Blueberries growing in?

Soil pH? Amount of organic matter? Drainage and moisture retention?

The Southern Ag, 31.4% copper ammonium complex is evidently meant to be used as a protectant, applied before any sign of disease appears.

kimmq is kimmsr

Yes, you can spray the neem oil at the same time.

Best answer, the cultural control and sanitation measures you have outlined are about all you can do. Do you know what varieties you have and how susceptible they are? If you have varieties that are highly susceptible, it may be better to replace them.

Two biological control product may be of interest to you to look into. Actinovate has been moderately successful, and Serenade Garden Disease Control. The Serenade in particular has been useful on rabbiteye varieties in Georgia.

I am sorry to say that I just put in three bushes a few years back after buying them at the nursery; I know that at least one is a different variety, and is a Premiere. (I am anything but an expert gardener and make more mistakes than I do anything else!). I don't know the soil pH, but the drainage and moisture retention has always been good. They have pine bark for mulch and always got coffee grounds to help with acidity. A couple of years ago, I was getting good blueberries while a blueberry place up the road put out a sign that they were closing for the season due to lack of berries. Last summer, I only stopped gathering gorgeous berries when the birds, after weeks, finally realized the owl and the strings of video tape streaming from the branches weren't real, and that I had tricked them. Only when I went to restore the plastic owl did I really notice all these hard little blueberries under the bushes. Nearly every tree and shrub gets leaf spot, which is just this section of Georgia, and especially hard to control if it includes neighboring trees. You are almost hard pressed to find a tree or shrub that doesn't have it to some degree unless it's been sprayed. Ugh.

I have read in several articles that organic measures aren't very effective once present. Although I don't want to, I might have to resort to it. We need the pollinators, and bumblebees LOVE my bushes :-( I've pored over pictures of wilted, dry blossoms, short little dead sticks on the stem, and the hard, shriveled berries that fall, some coated in grey, but not all. They sit right amongst clumps of healthy berries. Since there are only three, and none are taller than I am yet, I will be hand picking every day. I'm just going to rake away all the mulch for now so I can keep the base clear.

I will give them a good pruning this winter. I haven't pruned yet because I remember reading to give them a few years first. In the spring, would regular sprays of baking soda mixture prevent this? I do not want to use fungicides any more than I have to, as it will kill the bees.

I'll Neem those nasty little white flies, too.

I apologize, I realize the two mentioned, Activate and Serenade, aren't "fungicides", so to speak, but biological controls. I skimmed way too quickly on a busy morning ^_^ Looking them up now. I've always read that copper has it's drawbacks and needs to be used sparingly, and with caution. Hate fungus. We had a pretty wet winter, but May and June have been pretty dry for us. Georgia humidity hasn't slammed us yet, which is usually more of a July horror that begins to wane towards the latter part of August.

Sounds like you have mummy berry. Mummy berry is hard to control via organic means but excellent sanitation and good cultural practices can significantly reduce the problem. Copper based fungicides seem to be less effective than lime sulfur (both of which are considered "natural" or organic controls). FWIW, effectiveness of Serenade (Bacillus subtilis) is reported as low.