Aaron_K

Hi Andy,

Not giving deciduous trees a dormancy period does tend to weaken their resistance to infections and diseases. Putting it outside is the best thing to do, as after all, that is their natural environment. I know from experience, that the first time your bonsai drops its leaves in autumn, you get a bit paranoid that you are doing something wrong to cause that - when its perfectly natural.

However, its very early in the year for your tree to be losing its leaves in this manner. This suggests that there is another cause that is not so apparent at first inspection. Remember, what you see above the soil surface, is 99% to do with whats going on below it.

The dropping of leaves normally would lend itself to a root problem, IE the tree is unable to support the full level of foliage and so will drop leaves to a volume it can sustain. You also said that even new growth is dying off after a short while.

I just had a thought and am I'm guessing that this is the same tree that you just repotted into the Perlite/Sand mix recently. If the tree was in poor quality soil before hand, and you have washed it all off and repotted it, it will have stressed the tree, and so this could very well be a knee-jerk reaction its had.

The tree is now in a good draining soil that will allow for a beneficial mix of water and air around the root system. Its the roots in question that are going to need some time to recover, and so avoid fertilizing it for about 3 weeks. Then use the bonsai fertilizer at half strength. This should safeguard against damaging new root growth, but still provide some nutrients for foliage and branch development.

Keep the soil moist, and allow it to dry out to slightly before the next watering. Place it in semi-shade for a few weeks, then if/when leaves begin to grow, move to a sunnier location.

With some luck it should survive. Chinese elms are a pretty hardy tree and can take some punishment before they give up the ghost. Once its showing good signs of making a recovery, you can then begin to think about feeding it at the manufacturers recommended strength and schedule.

If after 2-3 weeks you haven't seen any improvement, try scraping the bark away from the trunk of the tree. If its green, the tree is alive, but just taking its damn sweet time to recover. If its not green... you have an ex-bonsai!

Hope that helps,

All the best,

Aaron