Chinese elm issues

[Thechineselm]

Hello,

I would like to ask for help and guidance regarding my Chinese elm, my chinese elm had a very healthy summer with full leaves and very green leaves but now that the winter arrived since it got colder it began falling a lot of leaves and right now it is almost without leaves.

I am thinking that the issue is the soil and bought some akadama soil and normal bonsai soil to mix with the akadama, can anyone give me some guidelines on how much should i use akadama vs normal soil and maybe how i can take better care of my elm in the winter.

A photo has been attaches of how healthy my elm was 2 months ago versus now that it is very cold

 

[Shibui]

Chinese elm is deciduous. It is natural for the leaves to go yellow and fall off in winter. I think your Chinese elm looks natural for winter.
In warmer winter areas they do not always drop leaves and can be almost evergreen. In cold areas all leaves will turn a nice yellow then fall. Inbetween climates some leaves will hang on the tree through winter then drop off as new leaves come in spring.

There is not one answer to how much akadama to mix with potting soil. So much depends on how you water and your local climate and what the 'normal' soil is like. Akadama is not a magic ingredient. I personally do not use akadama. It is not good for the way I manage bonsai in my location.

 

[Bnana]

Is your elm inside? They do a lot better outside and in Malta I would expect them to be green year round. There is no risk of problems with low temperatures there anyway.

I would keep it outside in a sunny place, water it regularly (when it is dry and repot it in akadama at the end of the winter.

 

[sorce]

Is Malta tropical?

Where is the tree from?

Sorce

 

[Thechineselm]

Malta is subtropical with very mild winter and very hot summers

 

[Gustavo Martins]

I would say Malta is Mediterranean, not subtropical.
As the others said, elms are deciduous trees and so it’s normal to have their leaves fall in winter.
you need a soil that has some ability to retain water because your summer is hot and dry. Why not use 100% akadama?

 

[Daniel Camilleri]

Even though we have mild winters in Malta, Chinese elms still drop all of their leaves at least mine have always done. Only one i've got at the moment is in the ground but had ones in pot before and always dropped their leaves. Re soil, where have you sourced akadama in malta if i may ask?

 

[Thechineselm]

Even though we have mild winters in Malta, Chinese elms still drop all of their leaves at least mine have always done. Only one i've got at the moment is in the ground but had ones in pot before and always dropped their leaves. Re soil, where have you sourced akadama in malta if i may ask?

I have sourced my akadama from sherries estate, thank you daniel

 

[Daniel Camilleri]

Thanks a lot, i'll check them out.