Chinese Elm's leaves fell off

[LouisianaNative]

I've had this Elm for about a year...everything was fine, until about 2 months ago, leaves started turning yellow and falling off. A little at first, then ALL of them fell off. And nothing after that, no leaves, nothing. I thought it died. I scratched the trunk with my fingernail, it was green. I kept watering it, hoping it would come back. The soil looked dark, almost black....and didn't seem to drain well. I'm new to this, so I wasn't sure what to do. It has some new green leaves, but not many. I finally decided to re-pot it. Maybe not the best thing to do, but thought I would give it a try. I potted it in some NAPA floor dry (diatomaceous earth) for better drainage. Any suggestions? What should I do? Anything? Nothing? I'm in need of some help. Thanks in advance!

 

[Vin]

I've had this Elm for about a year...everything was fine, until about 2 months ago, leaves started turning yellow and falling off. A little at first, then ALL of them fell off. And nothing after that, no leaves, nothing. I thought it died. I scratched the trunk with my fingernail, it was green. I kept watering it, hoping it would come back. The soil looked dark, almost black....and didn't seem to drain well. I'm new to this, so I wasn't sure what to do. It has some new green leaves, but not many. I finally decided to re-pot it. Maybe not the best thing to do, but thought I would give it a try. I potted it in some NAPA floor dry (diatomaceous earth) for better drainage. Any suggestions? What should I do? Anything? Nothing? I'm in need of some help. Thanks in advance!

I think you did fine. If it wasn't a CE then I may have a different opinion. It may take until next year for it to really kick in gear but be patient.

 

[LouisianaNative]

I think you did fine. If it wasn't a CE then I may have a different opinion. It may take until next year for it to really kick in gear but be patient.

Thanks for the reply. I'm currently keeping it out of direct sunlight. I guess I thought trees needed leaves to survive. This joker had none for a couple of months so I was thinking I lost it.