first bonsai tree - please help me!!!

suzybonsai

Hi

I have been given a bonsai tree for my birthday last week.

http://i332.photobucket.com/albums/m348/suzybonsai/IMGP1057.jpg

I have no idea what sort of tree it is, could anyone identify and give me a website or some directions on the best care for it. I have left it in the window with plenty of sunlight and watered it frequently but some of the leaves are going yellow and falling off!!

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks
Suzybonsai

splendidplumage

Welcome Suzy.

You have been given a Chinese Elm bonsai.
It does look like it has lost quite a few leaves but all is not lost yet.

Make sure you put it as close to the window as you can to get enough light to stimulate new leaves to grow.

Most importantly make sure you give it enough water. This last week has been very warm and sunny so it will have been drying out quicker then normal. Give it a good soak every evening.

Luckily Chinese Elms are one of the most tolerant varieties and are very good at bouncing back with enough light and water.

Dick

Hi Suzy,

Welcome to our forum. It's a friendly sort of place and all questions asked get sound information from any number of resident contributors.

There is a sticky at the head of this portion of the forum that talks about the basic care requirements for a Chinese elm like oyurs. You might find that interesting and helpful. The big thing is to remember that you really have an outdoor tree and it needs to be there. Often these types of trees are sold as easy to grow indoor trees and while they can be grown for a while indoors, they are best cultivated as outdoor trees.

So welcome again and please stop by often with any question of comment you might have.

suzybonsai · Posted: Thu Jul 31, 2008 4:27 pm Post subject: Thanks

Thanks for identifying the tree for me, I've gave it plenty of water and left it outside for the last few days, most of the yellowness has disappeared and it looks much healthier.

Thanks once again, i hope i can keep it healthy for a long time!!!

Suzy!!

steve

it will outlive all of us if you do. Wink

Dick

Make sure that your soil always has some moisture in it and it should do fine. In the fall, it will drop its leaves naturally and become dormant. In the UK, these trees can be left outdoors for the winter with minimum care. then in the spring, the burst forth with new growth. It's exciting to see it when it happens. You can add a bit of fertilizer at half strength once every 2 weeks until mid September too.