Juniper weather/water

Okay...after searching the board more and looking at various pictures, I believe that the bonsai I received 6/19/02 is a Chinese Juniper. *After a very unsuccessful experience with a mallsai, I was given this one from a nursery. *I would love to post a picture but still haven't figured out how to do that yet. *The plant is 7 1/2 inches tall from base of pot to top of plant. *The pot itself is 2 1/2 inches tall and 5x3 inches square. *The plant has a nice thick trunk. *I live near the St. Louis, MO area. *We just went through a week of summer temps in the low to min 70's with night temps in the 50's. *We are now starting a pattern of temps in the upper 80's to low 90's with heat index in the low 90's to triple digits. *In St. Louis, this is subject to change at any moment (there is no rhyme or reason to St. Louis weather). *Is it possible to over-water this juniper? *Should I just be sure to always go by sticking my finger into the soil and keep it moist? *It is on my deck with an eastern exposure. *As with St. Louis summers, the winters can be just as unpredictable. *We may have a week of temps in the 60's with nighttime temps in the 50's and then drop to teens & single digits for a week, then back into 30's, 40's & even 50's. *Should I move this plant into a garage for the entire winter or just when the temps fall below a certain level? *The garage has only one window with a southern exposure. *Should I add artifical light if I move it there? *I apologize for asking so much, but I hope to be ahead of the game instead of waiting until the plant is sick to try to find an answer.

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Jay

Hi Debbie! *First to post a picture, note at the bottom of every thread there is a "reply", this is how you get to reply to a message. Just below the area that you fill in for "message" there is an "Attach" space..... this is where you place the location of the pix you have. If its on your computer, hit the "Browse" button and look around your computer till you find it, then just click on the pix (on your computer in the browse button) and it will be added to the Attach area. When you press post it will be posted along with your message. With a new thread it is pretty much the same. I know it sounds confusing but it is really simple once you get the nack.

Forgot the rest of the post , Your tree can live outside pretty much all year, it may need to be protected from harsh winds in winter but it should be able to stay out by you... Do in the ground trees like yours live locally? If so, with a little added protection, you will be able to do the same with the potted one. I live in Zone 5/6 and my Junipers are out all winter with just a little protection.

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A Bonsai student living with his trees at N 44.37 W 77.49...
Think before you act... then think again... no good comes from rushing

It looks like I'm in zones 5/6. *The only yard "juniper" I have is a Blue Rug Juniper. *It survives just fine with our winters. *My concern is that something in a pot could have trouble with the drastic temperature fluctuations that we experience here in the winter. *We may have a week of temps in the upper 60's in the middle of January, then within 24 hours the temperature will drop to the teens with wind chills in the single digits. *That's why I was curious as to whether it would be better to put the plant in the garage in the winter or would you suggest just keeping it in a more protected corner on the deck, closer to the house? *Today, it's already in the 90's. *I've watered & misted once. *If it seems a little dry later on the same day, should I go ahead and water again or do I run the risk of overwatering? *

P.S. *There is no "Attach" space below the area where I've typed this message. *Nor can I find a "Browse" button anywhere. *All I have showing besides the place for name, e-mail, and subject are: "Message icon", "Add YABBC tags", "Add Smileys", "Message", &quotisable Smileys", "Post", "Preview" and "Reset Form". *I know I must be missing something. *I'm fairly computer literate but I certainly can't figure this one out.