Zelkova Help
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AshleyMammal
Mame
Wow, impressive decline in 4 days!
Where has the tree been kept for the past 4 days? Has the soil dried out or has it been constantly wet?
It looks dead, however, there may be just enough life left in it if you get it outside.
Where has the tree been kept for the past 4 days? Has the soil dried out or has it been constantly wet?
It looks dead, however, there may be just enough life left in it if you get it outside.
AshleyMammal
Mame
it looks like it’s actually a Chinese elm rather than Zelkova (a common mislabelling tactic apparently) and whilst Chinese elm are commonly sold as indoor bonsai, they’re really not. It needs to be outside. Put it in a shady location and only water when it needs it - it won’t be using much water at the minute- but never let it dry out completely (use a chopstick to probe how wet the soil beneath the surface is).
My guess is it’s likely to be an issue of the roots staying too wet, what does the soil look like? A potting/muddy type soil?
Don’t repot it yet - doing so will further weaken a seriously weakened tree, but be mindful that it will likely need doing next spring. Get rid of that rock if you can without it pulling up the roots.
My guess is it’s likely to be an issue of the roots staying too wet, what does the soil look like? A potting/muddy type soil?
Don’t repot it yet - doing so will further weaken a seriously weakened tree, but be mindful that it will likely need doing next spring. Get rid of that rock if you can without it pulling up the roots.
RODERLO
Mame
Did you order this online? If so, did it arrive in good condition? Was the soil dry?
Can you take a closeup pic of the soil?
I agree with @AshleyMammal, it should be outside.
Chinese Elms are fully hardy, you can leave them outside at night and even through winter.
Can you take a closeup pic of the soil?
I agree with @AshleyMammal, it should be outside.
Chinese Elms are fully hardy, you can leave them outside at night and even through winter.
Shibui
Imperial Masterpiece
As mentioned, this is almost certainly Chinese elm which are labelled as zelkova to get around import restrictions on elms.
The leaves look dry. If the soil has definitely not dried out then maybe the sun through the window has cooked the leaves. South facing window in hot weather with direct sun will get much too hot for anything except maybe cactus. Before you got it it was probably living happily somewhere more shaded so the leaves have adjusted to shade. Now you move it into burning sun and the leaves cannot cope. That's like going out into the blazing sun all day with no clothes. If you take a little more sun each day your skin adjusts to the sun levels until it can cope but going straight out into full sun will give you sunburn.
The good news is that most plants are resilient and Chinese elms are tougher than many. They do not die right away. It has just shut down the leaves in a bid to survive. New buds will show in a couple of weeks and grow into new shoots with new leaves. Leaves that open in full sun will be adapted to that sun level. you need to find an appropriate position for the tree - enough sun but not blazing afternoon sun (no you even have that in UK?)
Chinese elm can definitely cope with outside at night and even through winter in UK provided you manage watering and fertiliser to suit the conditions.
Adding a location to your profile helps us remember what part of the world you are in which helps give better advice based on climate and season. Not all of your pics will have a price tag to give that clue.
The leaves look dry. If the soil has definitely not dried out then maybe the sun through the window has cooked the leaves. South facing window in hot weather with direct sun will get much too hot for anything except maybe cactus. Before you got it it was probably living happily somewhere more shaded so the leaves have adjusted to shade. Now you move it into burning sun and the leaves cannot cope. That's like going out into the blazing sun all day with no clothes. If you take a little more sun each day your skin adjusts to the sun levels until it can cope but going straight out into full sun will give you sunburn.
The good news is that most plants are resilient and Chinese elms are tougher than many. They do not die right away. It has just shut down the leaves in a bid to survive. New buds will show in a couple of weeks and grow into new shoots with new leaves. Leaves that open in full sun will be adapted to that sun level. you need to find an appropriate position for the tree - enough sun but not blazing afternoon sun (no you even have that in UK?)
Chinese elm can definitely cope with outside at night and even through winter in UK provided you manage watering and fertiliser to suit the conditions.
Adding a location to your profile helps us remember what part of the world you are in which helps give better advice based on climate and season. Not all of your pics will have a price tag to give that clue.
You have a dried-out Chinese elm.
You are in the UK so this should be outside most if not all of the year, day and night. It would only need protection (e.g. greenhouse, sheltered location) when temperatures drop below -5c.
It's going to be in a crappy compost type soil (which you'll probably want to change next spring). When this dries out, it's sometimes difficult to re-wet it as water runs off the top. Given the hot conditions we have at the moment, you may not have been watering enough [EDIT: just noticed you said the soil had stayed damp, Shibui's diagnosis that you cooked the leaves is probably correct in that case].
I would suggest giving it a good soak (completely submerge the pot in a bucket or sink for an hour or so). Then stick it in a semi-shaded spot outside (too much sun / heat will be a problem when new leaves start growing). Try to keep the soil damp but not wet, until you learn how to water properly - at the moment this will mean watering most days. When you water, give it enough that you see water coming out of the drain holes. Assuming it pushes new leaves, which you might see in 2-3 weeks, you will probably be watering twice a day in July and August.
Shibui
Imperial Masterpiece
When it rains the tree gets watered. And it is actually very good water. Rain water contains Nitrogen which makes trees grow.
Most of us use a very open potting soil so it cannot stay too wet. Yours is probably in something a little less free draining. If you are worried that it is staying too wet after a string of rainy days pop it under shelter to allow the soil to dry out a bit.
What is there to be nervous about? Look around. The vast majority of trees live perfectly happy and fulfilled lives outside, as do most bonsai.
mkg
Seedling
It's the other way around: keeping the tree inside makes it nervous.
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