Nitrogen burn?

Josiana

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I've this elm now for nearly a month. It had severely terrible soil that was showing clearly in the leaves, and so I repotted into cat sand, and started fertilising. I've been following the directions on the bottle (liquid fertiliser) exactly. The tree bounced back within a few days. Heaps of new growth popped up, and the tree started to look much healthier. But, the new growth seems to come in, brown up, and fall off.

This a new fertiliser that I'm using when I purchased the tree. It's supposedly "year round bonsai fertiliser", at 4+2'2+5, versus generic brand 7-3-5. However, this elm seems to be the only tree affected. Ficus, bougainvillea, pine, spruce, juniper, and yew all seem to be fine with the same amount of fertiliser, and they all have the same cat sand soil mix.

I stopped using the liquid fertiliser on it a week ago, thoroughly drained the soil, and put a slow release stick in instead, but it does not seem to be improving.

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BobbyLane

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it looks fine. these are really outdoor trees, they will live indoors but they wont thrive. some of the issues you speak of could be a result of the lower light/air conditions. coming towards the end of season, chinese elms will discard some old or dead leaves.
 

Josiana

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Thank you.
South facing window, so it does get quite a lot of light. I do know when the leaves will change with the seasons, but this is new growth that has not even matured that is browning/blacking and falling off. No mature growth has dropped off recently, just new growth. The leaves do not even get a chance to mature. Very odd, I think.

I do plan to put the tree back outside, when it can gather enough energy for winter. Though I'm not set on it yet, because we've very long and hard winters. Not sure if it's a great idea to bung a tree out there after it was nearly dead? Else it may not recover in spring?
 

M. Frary

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I do plan to put the tree back outside, when it can gather enough energy for winter.
That's not going to happen.
It isnt going to gather energy to sustain itself inside in a window.
It's barely alive right now and struggling.
Unless you break out high intensity lights,a fan and a room humidifier it will slowly die.
It will never get acclimated to outside now. Outside for winter is out of the question.
So no. The problem with this tree isnt fertilizer. It's from being indoors. Fertilizing may have compounded the problem but it isnt the problem.
 

sorce

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I bet they could take your winter outside.
Next year!

Sounds like it is "confused".

It wants to grow where it was, but knows it should be dormant with you.

It knows what's going on beyond the window!

Less confusion next year!

S
 

M. Frary

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Next year! Lol!
I forgot them this year but if they pull through winter here again I have 2 cork bark Chinese elms for you. Theyve made it 3 years here but I think I'm pushing it. The only Chinese elms I have left and most likely the only 2 that have survived zone 4 winters for 3 years running in the world.
 

sorce

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I forgot them this year but if they pull through winter here again I have 2 cork bark Chinese elms for you. Theyve made it 3 years here but I think I'm pushing it. The only Chinese elms I have left and most likely the only 2 that have survived zone 4 winters for 3 years running in the world.

Nice! These 2 sails just keep falling off their stoops, so I left em in the weeds!

Hope to get at em in spring!

S
 

leatherback

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I am not sure where you are, or when winter will hit. In my whereabouts we wont have serious chances of real frost for another 4-6 weeks, beside maybe a white morning. I would not be concerned about putting a tree like yours in a sheltered spot near the house outside.

Naturally if you expect real cold within days it is a different story.

I feel that providing the tree with dormancy this winter would be better than letting it sulk inside.
 

Josiana

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That's not going to happen.
It isnt going to gather energy to sustain itself inside in a window.
It's barely alive right now and struggling.
Unless you break out high intensity lights,a fan and a room humidifier it will slowly die.
It will never get acclimated to outside now. Outside for winter is out of the question.
So no. The problem with this tree isnt fertilizer. It's from being indoors. Fertilizing may have compounded the problem but it isnt the problem.

Thank you. It was nearly dead when it was given to me; over watered with old and compounded soil, and kept indoors. I don't really plan to keep it indoors long-term, but like you said, I doubt it will survive the winter outdoors with the state I received it in. It will go back outside when spring arrives.

Bonsai4me says they do fine indoors over winter if they hardened in autumn correctly; http://www.bonsai4me.com/SpeciesGuide/Ulmus.html

I know the general consensus is "indoors bad!" Browning new leaves just seemed a bit more off to me than "indoors bad". It looks like nitrogen burn, but I wasn't certain.
 

Josiana

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I am not sure where you are, or when winter will hit. In my whereabouts we wont have serious chances of real frost for another 4-6 weeks, beside maybe a white morning. I would not be concerned about putting a tree like yours in a sheltered spot near the house outside.

Naturally if you expect real cold within days it is a different story.

I feel that providing the tree with dormancy this winter would be better than letting it sulk inside.

Jönköpings län Sweden. They're calling for a very hard winter this year. Last year we started to get 0c in October, but honestly I cannot be sure anymore because of how unpredictable the weather has become. Might be 2c this week.
 
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