Juniper is struggling

[Keepin_it_Reel]

My wife and I inherited a few Bonsais from her father who recently passed and we are learning to care for them. One is a type of Ficus which is doing really well but this Juniper is struggling and we aren't sure why.

In the beginning it wasn't getting enough sun so we changed it's location and within no time at all it started to develop new lime green looking growth and seemed to be happy.

Over the past few weeks it's gotten thin and a lot of the green is now turning brown and breaking off.

It gets full sun and we water it daily. Hoping to get some insight so we can get it back to great health.

 

[penumbra]

Is it allowed to dry out between waterings?

 

[Keepin_it_Reel]

Yeah, in fact it almost seems dry even with daily waterings.

 

[penumbra]

What is your location? You have not listed it so no one can tell you precisely how to care for your juniper. Possibly you need to water twice a day and you may need a re-pot.

 

[Keepin_it_Reel]

Sorry, Greenville SC.

 

[penumbra]

I hope someone else pops in here to offer their opinion, but here is what I am seeing.
First thing is that from the picture alone, I don't like the looks of your potting soil.
You are definitely loosing foliage but there is new growth as well. Since the new growth looks good I don't suspect spider mites which could be a real concern in a hot climate.
Because the soil is drying out so fast (you say) it is probably not a fungus problem. That is unless it is not drying out as you say. The surface could be dry but it may not be in the bottom of the mix.
If it is drying out rapidly in its full sun position, it may need water twice a day. Or you may consider another method of supplying more water like a water wick.
What kind of conditions did it live in before you inherited it?
Was it in a lot of shade before you moved it to lots of sun? If so, was the transition slow or fast?
Are you watering the pot or the whole plant?
Are you fertilizing? How much, how often and what type?
Personally, I would consider a re-pot in your climate but opinions vary.

 

[bwaynef]

I wonder about the conditions it was living in before. Some junipers are shedding their old foliage about this time of year. You can go through and remove all the brown foliage. That should open it up even more and provide less of an opportunity for critters/fungus to get a hold w/o you noticing. You can remove any foliage hanging down, growing in a crotch that you're SURE you're not going to cut back to (its ok to leave these for now*), and within 1/8-1/4" of the crotch. The latter foliage as well as the foliage hanging down is usually older and less efficient. That'll let it invest its growth into what's already growing strongly ...which will lead to back budding.



*If you're interested in some help with any of this, PM me and I can give you details about a study group that meets in Greenville #yeahthatgreenville.

 

[rollwithak]

I agree with what most are saying here. The plant actually doesn't look very unhealthy and we need more details about the regiment you are currently doing. Very hard to give advice on what to do when we aren't sure what you're doing. Have you repotted since acquiring the tree? If so what soil did you use? I would say you wouldn't need to water this tree daily if your summers aren't 110 degrees, Junipers enjoy a little bit of drought. Have you done any grooming? Do you know if the tree has been fertilized (this might easily be answered if you've had the tree for say 6 months and you haven't done it). You're tree is looking healthy, just needs a little TLC!!! Thanks for reaching out! Keep us updated!

 

[Colorado]

I’d put my money on it being a soil/watering issue. You mentioned that you are just learning to care for bonsai trees, so I’m just going to go back to square 1.

When you water, are you water it to the point that water flows freely out of the bottom of the pot?

It looks like it may be in potting soil, which can appear saturated with a bit of water, but actually only the top of the soil is holding moisture while the bottom of the pot remains dry.

The other critical question is: what type of potting medium is it in?

 

[Uncle Robo]

Based on the pictures, it might be overwatering.
Looks like it's potted in soil surrounded by substrate. Third picture shows the wet ground, so it's being thoroughly watered daily.

I would try watering less, Junipers like to dry out a bit in between waterings.

 

[Japonicus]

you wouldn't need to water this tree daily if your summers aren't 110 degrees

I agree with a lot of it too, but our high temp this year was 97ºF twice, and an unusual number
of 90º days. I water my junipers sometimes 3X/day, normally 2X. I'm using bonsai soil though...

If the OP could answer the questions on the media, maintenance, and take some close up pictures
of the soil with the top dressing pulled aside and describe what he finds therein, will indeed help.
Do allow the soil to dry some, but not devoid of moisture between waterings. One bone dry root mass
can kill a tree, in the heat of the moment.
Do remove the dead brown areas, but don't remove branches
on the interior or close to the trunk that might still be alive, that otherwise appears dead, know that it's dead
by a little twist between thumb and forefinger. Crispy brittle take, pliable leave.

 

[sorce]

It does seem a rather normal browning.

However, the look of the soil is concerning.

Not only what seems to be potting soil on the interior, but that the "top dressing" soil or what have you, seems to have been deeper at one point, which could mean it was tipped, or possibly watered so heavily soil was displaced.
That could have added to what seems a little excessive browning.
But it looks to be recovering.

Sorce

 

[Forsoothe!]

The pictures just show old, inner foliage "dying", so nothing is wrong. If the temps are getting to 97°F water more than once a day, at noon is nice. My advice? Sell the Juniper to someone who is a bonsai person, muy pronto. Seek out his old club members. Greenhorns should not own what they can't take care of. This IS NOT a negative judgement of the family members, it's just a plain truth that all bonsai insiders know from their own early histories where they acquired trees beyond their wisdoms and killed them with bad handling. My own list is too long to speak about. Keep the Fig, they're easy, and you'll rest easier.

 

[Sansui]

I see some webbing in the bottom center and bottom left in the middle picture. Spider mite infestation?

 

[Sansui]

You may want to contact Green Thumb Bonsai outside of Greenville to see if they would be willing to give you a diagnosis and care advise. I don't know them but I do know that the bonsai community is always willing to help out anyway they can.

 

[Forsoothe!]

Mites like dry foliage and are endemic. I water with a hose everyday and take care to spray all foliage to shake it and wet it, underneath and from above. It's not a question if mites are on the trees, it's the number.
"Spider mites prefer hot, dry conditions and lay transparent eggs which can hatch in as little as 3 days. Hatchlings are sexually mature in 5 days, and female mites can live for up to 2-4 weeks, laying up to 20 eggs per day."

They ride the winds on gossamer strands of silk, blowing in every direction, from shrub to shrub to trees and grass and the screens on your windows. All you can do is make some small areas too wet and disturbed for a population boom.

 

[Japonicus]

It does seem a rather normal browning.
But it looks to be recovering.
Sorce

Sorry Sorce I cannot agree with you on this one.
If that was normal I would have thrown in the towel a long time ago

Agreed on the soil certainly, but on my bench, it would be wrong not to treat
for mites erring on the cautious side, if for nothing else, preventative maintenance
or good husbandry as we say in the reefing hobby...long before it got ANY browning.

@MeanDean how many hours
of Sunlight do your conifers get? Your grass looks to be full shade but really dark green
like a good well watered and aerated Sun loving lawn. Kentucky Midnight bluegrass is that dark in full Sun
and struggles in shaded areas, but yours looks great. Whassup?
Our condolences to your wife and you.

 

[Japonicus]

Today nearing Summers end

@sorce 1st is my most weak, 2nd is my most brown juniper.
Neither have been cleaned beyond when they came out of dormancy
both repotted within the last year, (1st one this Spring, 2nd one last April)
so I've pretty much let them alone this year. No thinning or pinching.
What normal, what I would refer to as normal browning there is
is between viable inner growth and the growth at the end of the tips
no tips are brown, or very few, just interior needles/leaves along the woody shoots.
The one I potted last year had more brown than now, possibly a disease was getting hold
as the akadama I used to use had broken down, and soil was wearing out, difficult to water properly.

This is good illustration for the OP, as attentiveness is learned. Had I repotted the year prior, (2017)
I would not have got as much brown as I had. It would recover from repotting better.
Here's the thread last year when I repotted it.

Repotting another juniper today (Ole No. 2)

I've no clue when I acquired this tree, but this is one of the oldest pics I can archive on it 2 29 2012. I did the jin, so have had to have had it at least since 2009. Not sure if it was a Lowes mallsai of not in the smallest pot they sold them in at the time. Good chance, that's where I got...

www.bonsainut.com

2nd post 2nd pic you can see how much brown had come on with this procumbens.
Lax on my part, that's not good. All branches had growing tips, and was left for strength
to aid in recovery. Now, now I need to thin and wire it again. At least thin it.
When I'm caught up on thinning it good, it will be time to repot it again, and the circle spins on.
They get 2 types of treatment proactively, a total of 3 or 4 applications a year.
Certainly on either side of dormancy and Summertime minimum.

 

[sorce]

@sorce 1st is my most weak, 2nd is my most brown juniper

Most weak...and brown! Lol!

That's fantastic!

Great looking stuff!

Sorce

 

[Japonicus]

Most weak...and brown! Lol!

That's fantastic!

Great looking stuff!

Sorce

Thanks
Yes and most important, worn out from the heat, pushing new growth low on the weak one good
open fast growth, the rest of the juniper is not as slow as Dorian over the Bahamas, but behind times
kinda like me, slow ugly and behinds the times.