Brush Cherry

TBlake84

Here it is. I bought a brush cherry about a month ago. I took it home and put it under my grow lights as I anticipated taking it to school and keeping it in my dorm and wanted it acclimated to this environment in time. I did not use a humidity tray or anything because New England is pretty humid in August as it is. The day before returning to school I repotted it (I know, bad timing but what can ya' do?). I root pruned about 20-30% and changed the soil. I put moss on the top instead of the gravel it had before.

now, three weeks after the repotting, about 80% of the tree has dried up. The leaves aren't turning brown and falling off, they're just dried up and still hanging on the tree. I'm a little worried. I just put a bowl of water under the grow lights to help the humidity but I don't think that's the problem. Is it normal for a brush cherry to experience this much dieback after a rootpruning? My ficus that I repotted the same day is doing fine, a little browning and leaf drop but not nearly as extensive as the cherry. Please help!

-Tim

P.S. After the repotting, I lowered the timer on the growlights from 16 hours a day to 8 and didn't water (aside from misting the moss and tree itself) for about 10 days. It is now back to 16 hours of light a day and I water about once a week. It has gotten cooler and dryer so I might need to water a bit more often.

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Cycas revoluta
Acer buerguerianum
Acer saccharum
Acer palmatum atropurpureum
Ficus neriifolia
Eugenia myrtifolia

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Kitsune

Not watering the tree for ten days after the repot might have done it in hun, I hate to say it.... I could be mistaken, but I've never not watered well after a repot. The tree gets put under a lot of stress and needs the water since likely much of what was pruned were the fine feeder roots. Any tree, especially one just repotted, would be unhappy (i.e. likely dead) after a ten day stint of not being watered.

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"Learn about pines from the pines, and about bamboo from the bamboo." -Basho


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TBlake84

I did submerse the tree for a while after the repot. It certainly got watered well. I just didn't water it for a while after that.

__________________
Cycas revoluta
Acer buerguerianum
Acer saccharum
Acer palmatum atropurpureum
Ficus neriifolia
Eugenia myrtifolia

Kitsune

One "thorough" watering doesn't make up for missing a number after the fact....

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"Learn about pines from the pines, and about bamboo from the bamboo." -Basho


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PatArizona

Ten days is faaaarrrr to looonnnggg fo rno watering...unless it's raining...

Pat

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BONSAI isn't about surviving in a storm, rather, how to dance in the rain.
THE ONLY WAY: Always remember, and don't ever forget, that whatever you read here is not cast in concrete... the intent of any advice is to help. In no way should you feel that I’m saying that my way is the only way…heaven forbid! I've seen far too much of the "my way or the highway" attitude in bonsai as well as in other areas of life.

TBlake84

Admittedly, I didn't water it enough. I over exaggerated the "water less after root pruning" mantra. However, the cambium is still green and it did end up pushing out a few blooms about a week after I repotted. The leaves are all pretty much dried up now but still hanging on the tree. I have given it a good watering and will monitor very closely for the next few days but what are the chances this tree may pull through? Again, my ficus that I gave the same treatment is doing alright.


Thanks guys.

-Tim

__________________
Cycas revoluta
Acer buerguerianum
Acer saccharum
Acer palmatum atropurpureum
Ficus neriifolia
Eugenia myrtifolia

Kitsune

Keep in mind that different trees are more or less tolerant of different treatments. It's one of the reasons people have so many species specific questions.... not every tree can be treated the same way. Even though your ficus did just fine, doesn't mean anything else will.... and I still wouldn't "recommend" a repeat treatment, even though the ficus did well

If the cambium is still green, that's great! I'd mostly be gentle to it. Don't fertilize until it's recovered, and keep a normal watering routine, resist the urge to overwater to compensate. Also, is the moss over the top of all the soil? While moss looks very nice, I know that I seldom keep moss on the surface all the time. It can keep water from seeping into the soil when you top water, and it does have different requierments to thrive than your tree does. If it's only on some of the soil, don't worry about it right now, but if it's covering 100%, I would remove at least some of it. Keep us posted on the progress

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"Learn about pines from the pines, and about bamboo from the bamboo." -Basho


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TBlake84

Can I get an idea of what a watering regiment should be like for a tree like this? Should I let it dry out a bit between waterings or no? There are so many differing reports on this topic and it's incredibly confusing.

I know Cherry Trees are water loving but I have in impression the line between watering well and overwatering is very thin and I don't want to have another episode with this (very expensive) tree.

__________________
Cycas revoluta
Acer buerguerianum
Acer saccharum
Acer palmatum atropurpureum
Ficus neriifolia
Eugenia myrtifolia

Kitsune

How good is the drainage in the soil you have it in? Does the water pool on the top of the soil or does it run right through? Good drainage is crucial to bonsai survival in the long run. You want the water to run straight through to come out of the bottom of the pot almost immediately. There is no set time frame for when and how much you need to water. Depends on the plant, the conditions, the pot size, everything.

In general, don't let the soil dry out *completely*. You can use a chop stick to help you. Insert it into the soil. If it comes out wet, don't water. If only the bottom half of the chop stick is wet, then definately water it. You can also use your finger to see how dry the soil is.

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"Learn about pines from the pines, and about bamboo from the bamboo." -Basho


Please visit me at: http://kitsunebonsai.blogspot.com/