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I think with the condition of the soil, the condition of the plant, and impending 100+F days, I'd repot this tree and try to baby it as necessary until its established. At the same time, I'd remove all the weak foliage.

Wow! That is incredible stock. Where'd you get something like that? When was it collected?

Plucking down to a specified # of needles is only for refinement according to Boon. He teaches needle plucking at decandling but its about evening out densities and strength. There is no counting of needle pairs at that time. Late winter I think is when they're plucked down to 5/6/7-8 pairs...

I think you're going to have a hard time maintaining enough moisture for those roots to develop. Most exposed roots are developed and THEN revealed. The sphagnum isn't going to maintain enough moisture to keep those roots happy. Plant it deeper for another year and slowly start to expose them.

There's an adapter in the plumbing section of big-box stores that convert to garden hose from 3/4". https://www.lowes.com/search?searchTerm=3%2F4%22+to+garden+hose+adapter

Looks more than a bit like Napoleon's hat. You're failing to see what this tree can become. Study more juniper bonsai. Choose a show that has trees in it that you like. Consider what it would take to get from hither to yon.

I'm not saying that ceramicists can't be artists. I just haven't seen as much dedication to the craft as I'd like to see ...at least in the finished product.

If you can find Phyton 35 (or 27), I think that might have as good a chance as any at stopping Pseudomonas. Zerotol, which is strong peroxide w/ an activator acid that makes it more effective, also works but I don't believe it has ANY systemic properties. (Zerotol is (essentially) rebranded as...

I think many American potters are more interested in free expression than craft and artistry, even if they say that their free-expression is art. I made a post in a similar vein that wasn't well-received. I believe that its a lack of craft that allows them to pull off the design quite...

Dave alluded to what I was going to say but skirted it a bit. Verticillium wilt leaves no outward marking on the tree. It will show if you cut into it as darkening of the cambium (i believe) ...which is the gumming up of the tissues that transfer water ...which causes the leaves to wilt...

I'll see if I can find a resource. Unless you beat me to it. (There's SOME disagreement as to how effective it is...)

Here's what I saw. The blue is where you have to make some decisions. I *think* I'd use the right branch to become the apex and try to bend the left one down, but that's going to be a challenge. Either way, I wouldn't be in any rush to decide. You're hoping the cutback and cleanup yield TONS...

https://bonsaitonight.com/2009/05/28/utah-juniper/

Its hard (for me?) to identify junipers in a weak condition. This one definitely looks like it needs to be cleaned out and settle into what I suspect is a fresh repot. What soil is it? It doesn't look like Torulosa/Kaizuka/Hollywood juniper to me though. I don't see the spires of new growth...

I'd start by clearing out dead needles from the crown and from the pot. Remove any branches you can determine won't be a part of ANY plan. How comfortable are you with grafting and what is your timeline for a presentable tree (whatever your definition of that is)? How willing are you to...

To clarify, I was suggesting using thicker wire and maybe 2 strands of it (thicker wire). I did exactly that and got just about all the movement I needed on some pronana junipers last year. 2 smaller strands cut in faster. If you have difficulty getting the bends you want, use jin pliers.

Kudos for not making a cascade juniper from cheap bigbox juniper material! I'd suggest you use thicker wire on the trunk, and maybe 2 strands. Then you could get the trunk upright w/o having to repot it. They're plenty flexible with enough encouragement (thicker wire). Also, go ahead and...

I cosign (if he'll let me) everything rockm suggested. Remove that low branch on the left because its too low, the one above it because its inside a curve, and the 2nd on the right because its inside a curve (and possibly a bar branch as well). Then wire everything down. Once you have...

I wouldn't do nothing. If you choose not to repot, soji.

This batch is giving me my best results so far. The ones pictured aren’t the best. Mark Comstock has taken an interest in mentoring me and I’ve learned a good bit from him. Not surprisingly he has been telling me most of these things for a while but I was too stubborn to do WHAT he says. Some of...

I suspect MC is going to up-pot it if he hasn’t already. That’s usually how these threads go.

What is it you’d have us see in the photo above. I see a couple needles with a few spots missing appropriate color and several tops that are yellowing a tad. If it’s the former that has you worried, don’t. If it’s the latter, that’s a root/watering issue. What soil is this in and when/how was it...

This is one of the times that airlayering sets the tree back. The tree doesn't seem to be remarkable in any way. That is to say, there's a dozen more like it at the nursery. (We don't see a ton of J. torulosa over here, but I don't think they're rare where you are.) And you seem to be pretty...

Fair enough. I was referring to Peter Adams' work. Many of the contents in it are too similar to Merrigioli's for me to believe the latter's is all original.

Peter Warren's Bonsai with Japanese Maples has lots of development technique as well.