dovie

So, I think I was over watering/under watering my plant. The leaves started to turn yellow, then brown, then crunchy, then fall off. So, we took it back to the shop where we had gotten it. The lady told me to put it outside, so, that's exactly what I did. The roots got like a white moldy looking stuff on them. I think moving it outside doomed it. I have no idea what happened.

There is nothing green about this tree. I'm not sure how to check the roots, but I did the "bark test" and it's wet, but like I said, no green. Should I just cut my loses and chuck it?

treebeard55

I hate to say it, but it's probably a goner. Lack of any green between the outer bark and the sapwood is a sure indicator. If the roots are black, limp, and the outer layer pulls off easily, they're dead too.

Moving it outside was almost certainly not what killed it. Trees and shrubs are meant to be outside; if they're indoors, they need light, humidity, and temperatures that mimic what they'd get in their native range. If your tree was inside, without sufficient light and/or with poor drainage, that's probably what did it in.

Remember that trees and shrubs live and die at a much slower pace than we do! Perfectly possible for it to be already dead and that fact to only become apparent when you took it out.

Don't give up! You're not the first to kill a tree; we all have. Think of a few dead trees as part of the "tuition" involved in learning bonsai, and the deaths are then not a total loss.

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Treebeard 55
Steve Moore
http://hoosierbonsai.blogspot.com

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dovie

Thanks, your reply makes me feel better. I think I will go get another one and try again!

treebeard55

Good for you!

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Treebeard 55
Steve Moore
http://hoosierbonsai.blogspot.com

The most important bonsai tool is your brain.

JLDoggett

Let us know when and what you get...

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dovie

I will! I'm going to go look at them this weekend and maybe go for a chaeper one so I'm not wasting so much money this time.

Phil

I'd like to know what the first tree was?
Did you keep it inside from the day you purchased it?
If so, don't make that mistake again as all trees are meant to be kept outside. Granted, some species of trees will survive inside, but will only, for the most part, flourish outside.

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Aeron

I would wait until next spring before I bought a new tree. Most trees you buy will be planted in poor soil with poor drainage. If you wait until spring you will be able to repot your tree right away into some good soil with good drainage and give your new tree the best start. In the mean time I would read lots of books and forums and gather as much info as you can so you have an idea of what you'll be doing next year. Waiting till the sping may seem like a long time but you would have learned your first and most valueble lesson in bonsai - patience.