New Brush Cherry Owner Seeking Advice

[Pollak1322]

Hello! I am new to the bonsai world and this forum so if this is in the wrong place please forgive me.

I purchased my very first bonsai this past spring. I was told it was a 15 year old “Brush Cherry” and it has been doing well up until now! I am an arborist by trade and was very excited to learn the art of bonsai. I am located in Connecticut so I have had it indoors now for the past month or so and it made the adjustment from outdoors to inside well...

Over the thanksgiving holiday one of my extended family memebers moved the tree from its location on a table surrounded by windows to on the mantle over the lit fireplace unbeknownst to me! I am guessing the drastic temperature change is the cause of the rapid decline...The leaves have been heavily dropping, new leaflets shriveled up, and remaining leaves have lost some of their deep green shine. Since then I have been watering it on its normal schedule of once every three days or when the soil feels dry.

I am seeking some advice on what to do and how to potentially remedy my unfortunate situation, I have attached some pictures of it’s current state. Thanks for any input!

 

[amcoffeegirl]

I don’t know the answer but someone will be by shortly to assist.
Indoors maybe pick up some lights to help with indoor growing. Maybe a seed mat to keep roots warm.
Free draining bonsai soil is needed.
Try to keep it alive until spring then put back outside. If all else fails buy 2 more.

 

[Pollak1322]

Thanks! I have been looking into lights, there are so many options and I’m not looking to break the bank, any suggestions would be appreciated. As far as the soil goes, the water tends to run right off the moss at first but then does soak in and run out of the drainage holes in the bottom of the pot. When would be an appropriate time to repot it and with what kind of soil? Also would any fertilization be beneficial?

 

[coh]

What purpose is that moss serving? I'd pull it back and see what's going on under it, if it is full of roots you probably should leave it but if not...I'd consider removing it as it might be making watering trickier (you could have a dry area under that moss if all the water runs off it to the pot edges). Maybe pull that moss away and take another pic for us to see.

You're in a tricky spot because the tree has obviously been dealt a serious blow. However, this seems to be a pretty tough species (I have had one for about 6 years). I'd say for now, keep it moist but not too wet, give it the best light you can. If you don't have a window with a decent amount of sun, you'll need to get some kind of supplemental lighting.

 

[Pollak1322]

Thanks for the reply! I’m not sure the purpose of the moss, it was there when I bought it so I’ve left it in place. It seems to just peel up of the soil fairly easily. I thought it was a good way to maintain a bit of moisture in the soil during the summer months as well. I will take pictures of the soil beneath it when I get home!

Glad to hear it’s a hearty species, I’ve scratched off a little bark on the outer most twigs and they are still bright green which I was happy to see.

 

[Pollak1322]

I got around to pulling the moss off of the soil and took some pictures of what was underneath...I watered it two days ago and the soils was still damps. I’m not really sure if it is the proper soil type but I did see roots popping through the surface as well as some sort of cloth that can be seen in the third picture. It looked like a type of cloth to prevent weeds in and landscaping bed.

 

[Carol 83]

If you watered it 2 days ago, the soil doesn't look just damp, but pretty soggy. But repotting now isn't really an option for a tropical, especially since it is ailing. I have had luck chopsticking some DE into soil retaining too much water, to lighten it up a bit, until safe to repot.. Pulling it up like shown in the second picture, probably didn't do the roots a lot of good. Best of luck with it.

 

[coh]

So it's hard to tell from these photos (if you could take one from the side looking at the trunk just above the container that might help), but it looks like the soil is mounded up considerably around the trunk? If that is the case, it looks like the previous owner/seller took a tree with a large root ball and crammed it into a very shallow pot. So eventually (if the tree makes it) you'll have to deal with that.

For now, I don't think it matters too much what type of soil it is in - you have to coax it back to life and get it growing. So I'd recommend keeping it in a bright (preferably sunny but strong artificial lighting if you don't have a sunny spot) and warm place, and keep the soil damp/moist but not soaking. Since it has few or no leaves right now, you probably won't have to water very often. Once it has recovered and has a decent set of leaves you can worry about dealing with the soil/roots. As long as the soil is moist and the pot drains when it is watered, you should have a chance.

 

[Pollak1322]

Yes it does appear that the soil is mounded up around the trunk, from my experience being an arborist I know that is not good for the tree as it can encourage the growth of girdling roots, however, I guess I will deal with that when the time comes...

Thanks for the advice, I have it in the sunniest part of the house possible and when I can I’m moving the tree throughout the day as the sun moves and keeping the soil moist. I’m going to hope for the best and I guess we will see what happens!

 

[Bonsai Nut]

If I had to guess, your little eugenia got fried

It doesn't take much to dry out a live tree if it is sitting by a fireplace, let alone on the mantel. Eugenias are pretty common landscape plants around here and they make great hedge shrubs because of their dense growth habit. They don't like wet feet so make sure you don't let the soil stay constantly soaking wet or the roots will rot. You want to be able to water and see the water come out the bottom of the pot almost instantly - as a sign the soil is draining well and the tree isn't root-bound in the pot. Initially glancing at the photos (before I read your note) I assumed that the problem was going to be root rot, because I saw all the dry foliage which I thought indicated a compromised vascular system.

Otherwise, the more sunlight, the better. They grow in full sun here in Southern Cal and don't miss a beat, so in the winter make sure you flood it with light. They don't necessarily demand high humidity, so it is a secondary consideration. Don't, for example, think that it needs to sit in a tray of water or anything similar.

Full light, good watering, well-draining soil, and your eugenia should pop right back.

 

[Pollak1322]

Awesome! Thanks for the info, I don’t think the soil it is in is optimal so I’m going to repot when appropriate (not really sure when that would be?).

As far as lighting goes I have it in the sunniest part of the house for this time of year but where I live in Connecticut is densely forested so I have a feeling it isn’t getting enough natural light to recover from this incident. Does anyone have any suggestions on a decent grow light that won’t break the bank? Or at least what color spectrum light I should be looking for?

When I last looked at the little guy yesterday I saw some tiny new leaflets starting to pop out on a few branches and the trunk so I don’t think all hope is lost!

Thanks so much for everyone’s help!

 

[Bonsai Nut]

@Pollak1322

I was at the Huntington Gardens a couple of weeks ago, and took some photos of brush cherries so you can see what they look like when styled as topiary. You can get very tight growth out of them.

 

[Pollak1322]

@Bonsai Nut

Thank you for the pictures! I’ve never seen a mature Brush Cherry before. Unfortunately mine isn’t looking as good as the ones pictured... most of the branches dried up and died so I have pruned them all off leaving only the remaing “green” growth and hoping to start over! I will try to post updated pictures when I get home.

Also, I could still use some recommendations on what kind of grow light to purchase without breaking the bank! There is some new growth but I think a dedicated light would make all the difference.

 

[Bonsai Nut]

Define "break the bank"

Anything that grows marijuana will be plenty strong for your brush cherry. Though I said they like direct sun (and they do), they are pretty tolerant of a wide range of conditions. I have a small one in a planter (outside) that is only getting indirect sun right now in the winter. In the summer when the sun is more vertical, it gets sun for a few hours per day - but not all day long.

The reason why I mention marijuana is that it is probably the #1 market for grow lights. I did a quick search on Amazon, and this was a good-looking light that delivers very strong PAR numbers (PAR stands for "photosynthetically available radiation"). It gets great reviews from people growing plants that are... shall we say... more light demanding than brush cherries

ttps://www.amazon.com/Spectrum-Medicinal-Greenhouse-Replaced-Consumption/dp/B074MBP32M