Is my Chinese Elm bonsai dead?

Fairy

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My bonsai leaves are yellow and almost all it's leaves have fallen. Is it dying or is there still hope? Help please
 

penumbra

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Need your location. Please add to to your profile. Also a picture would help.
 

WNC Bonsai

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Also tell us what you’ve been doing to it: watering, styling, keeping it inside
, etc.
 

ShadyStump

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What they said.
Could just be fall colors, could be dying because you kept it inside too long, could arboreal syphilis. Can't tell if we can't see, or at least have an idea what conditions you're under.
 

Fairy

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I've been watering it once or twice a week. I water with a watering can. I kept it outside during the summer, but brought it inside now the weather is colder.
 

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Fairy

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Also i'm in the uk
 

Shibui

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Chinese elm are semi deciduous so it is normal for the leaves to turn yellow and fall off in fall so for UK at this time of year this looks normal.

The others have asked for your location in order to give much better advice. Chinese elms are quite hardy in most places and can stay outdoors all winter but in colder places they will need some protection. In most of the UK it will be fine outside through winter. Mine experience down to -5C a few nights each winter without any problems.

Once or twice a week does not sound like much water but could be Ok as days are shorter for you and cooler now. Do you check soil moisture each day to decide when it needs water? yellow leaves can also be a sign of stress and not enough water can cause that.
 
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I'm in the UK (midlands) and my chinese elms stay outside all winter without batting and eyelid - they're all currently still in full leaf.

I think i would put this one back outside and hope that bringing it in hasn't shocked it too much. I've had elms worse than that come back in to full growth but you might be waiting until spring
 

ShadyStump

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All good guidance so far.
Chinese elms are a subtropical species, so they can survive indoors, but you need to give them ALLOT of light. More than a window, like a window and a grow bulb.

Watering; try the chopstick trick. Jab a wooden/bamboo chopstick or skewer into the soil all the way to the bottom of the pot, and leave it there. Use it like a dipstick to check soil moisture, and water when it's all but dry.
 

Fairy

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Thanks for all the advice. Hopefully my bonsai will recover.
 

penumbra

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I would not call Ulmus parvifolia a subtropical plant although it will survive in the tropics. It is native to Northern to Central China, Japan, and Korea but has also naturalized in Vietnam, India and elsewhere. It is hardy from zone 5b to 10b.
Personally I would never recommend growing one indoors, though all things are possible. The only one I ever managed to kill was being kept indoors. It lingered quite a while but eventually died.
 

Fairy

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Hi again!
I have followed your advice and I have kept it outdoors and thankfully I am seeing a lot of leaves coming out now.
They seem a bit spotty and yellow though. I have attached some pictures and would like to know if my bonsai looks sick.FB5CF2A1-DFFD-4856-B44E-6D57F957AA6B.jpeg2EF49B49-927D-40A0-909D-E645BFA4BF45.jpegFB5CF2A1-DFFD-4856-B44E-6D57F957AA6B.jpeg2EF49B49-927D-40A0-909D-E645BFA4BF45.jpeg
 

ShadyStump

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Looks like it may be coming back.
Just let it grow for now. Once it wakes up a bit more, puts on some more foliage, give it a bit of fertilizer. Start with low doses once a week or so because it may still be weak, and fertilizing a sick tree can cause more stress.
 
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