bonsai

[bubbly2000]

my son has an indoor bonsai tree, its leaves have started to go brown and shrivel. There are new shoots on it, but hes not sure what to do as the old ones don't seem to be dropping off. Hes worries it going to die. I was told to water it daily, but when I read up on them its advised only to feed weekly and water when quite dry. Any help would be greatly appreciated

[Clanad]

There are several kinds of bonsai (the term simply means tree in a tray), so I would need to know what plant you're talking about to help...

[Hawkwalk]

they dont need feeding weekly and they should never be allowed to dry out. They are in most cases an outdoor tree that has been restricted and grown in a small pot. Indoors they will not like it too warm and should not ever dry out. It sounds like your sons tree has dried out at some point. Prune off the old, dead shoots and allow the new ones to grow. It may benefit from a dunk in water for 5 minutes once a week to make sure it is wet all the way through, mist the leaves whenever you can as they will not like the dry air of a house and feed every two to four weeks depending on the season.

[AlBags]

Most likely dying through over-watering. Watering something like this every day is nonsense.

[spitza]

My brother went into bonsai production he was so successful he had to move into smaller premises!

[bubbly2000]

yes i think he may be watering it too much...i will find out the name of the tree and let you know clanad.

[AlBags]

There are not several .. but thousands of kinds of bonsai ...
Only one that likes to grow in water that I know of are some Salix species (willow!)

[hammerman]

Your posts are both misleading and arrogant AlBags. I've grown bonsai outdoors for many many years but have yet to keep an indoor bonsai for more than a few weeks. they dry out very quickly even in winter due to a small sized pot, vigorous root system and not much soil. They are also very prone to red spider mite if kept in warm, dry conditions.

The answer therefore is to water when it needs it.....if it needs watering every day THEN IT SHOULD BE WTERED EVERY DAY. Feed your plant with a liquid feed such as miracle grow once a week when the plant is growing well....usually from may to september and as mentioned, they will appreciate a daily mist over the leaves.

Another thing AlBags....a Bonsai is not a variety (referring to you quote about there being thousands of TYPES of bonsai) It is mearly a method of restricting the plant's growth. Virtually anything can be bonsai'd.....including bamboo and some grasses. If you planted a 100 year old bonsai back into the ground, it would continue growing into a full size specimen.

[bubbly2000]

thankyou hammerman, i think we have cracked it now..cheer :)