Help with Kingsville Boxwood

[bonsaivienna]

Hi all,

I purchased this Kingsville boxwood several months ago. It was lush and seemed to be thriving initially, but quickly started dying off. After some careful attention, it is just starting to show some new growth on top.

My question is what I should do with the dead leaves/branches. Are they toast at this point, and should I trim back to the main trunk? Or just remove the leaves and see if new shoots/leaves appear?

Thanks much!

 

[coachspinks]

I would pull off any leaves that will easily come off. If you are confident a branch is dead you can cut it back to live wood as well. Are you keeping it indoors? If so, I would move it outside. Although I have seen them marketed as indoor bonsai they are outdoor plants.

 

[Shinjuku]

I would pull off any leaves that will easily come off. If you are confident a branch is dead you can cut it back to live wood as well. Are you keeping it indoors? If so, I would move it outside. Although I have seen them marketed as indoor bonsai they are outdoor plants.

Do what coachspinks wrote.

I have a couple of Morris Midget boxwoods, almost identical to Kingsville. I keep them outside in almost full sun in the summer, and they love it. So make sure they get plenty of sunlight outdoors. If you’ve been keeping it indoors and move it outside, you’ll probably need to water more often. Your soil looks good (Plenty of inorganic soil), so you shouldn’t have to worry about over-watering.

 

[Nemoose]

Agree. Prune it back to live wood and give it plenty of Sun

 

[0soyoung]

My question is what I should do with the dead leaves/branches. Are they toast at this point, and should I trim back to the main trunk? Or just remove the leaves and see if new shoots/leaves appear?

Remove the brown/dead leaves. It just shades potential new growth. If the ends of branches are obviously withered and dry, cut that part off too. Else, keep it.

It looks like your tree has some serious root problems. I'm guessing that you are watering too often and the roots are drowning - roots must get air (oxygen, specifically) to do what they do. Don't water it until you see the new growth begins to droop. Then water and you should see it perk back up within an hour or two. Ideally you only want to water just before this loss of turgidity happens. Some people plunge a chopstick in the pot as use it as a water dipstick to help with this.

 

[j evans]

Looks to me like it is inside. Het it outta there and into nature! It will love being outside. That looking tree otherwise. Good luck
Jamie

 

[bonsaivienna]

Thanks, all! It is not inside, it is in an open “greenhouse” on my deck, and gets good sunlight.

 

[j evans]

Not the same as being "free". The poor thing is just looking out a window.

 

[sorce]

Nice base!

Could be a lack of air if it was tented all summer.

Save it!

S