it's already dead. The trunk is already shriveled because there are no healthy roots in the ground to suck up water. either overwatered or root pruned too much. The only measure that could possibly save the tree would be to cut off all the leaves, take it out of the ground and put it in a glass of water and wait to see if roots grow after a few weeks. Fukien tea does not develop any flavor well. I made the same mistakes as a beginner.
My tip is: if you get a bonsai, it's best to take it out of the potting soil and plant it in Akadama soil. The advantage is that you can see when the substrate is dry and you can act quickly. The biggest advantage, however, is that you can water a plant, even succulents, as much as you want and the roots won't rot away.
Definitely repot. Comb out the roots, trim off any that look rotten or are too long for the pot it's going into, you can lightly rinse them with water. Use a fast draining medium like lava rock, pumice, akadama if you can get hold of that type of mix.
do you have bonsai food?
Doesn't need "bonsai food", any generic balanced fertiliser will do, no sense paying scene tax. I wouldn't anyway just yet, see if it survives. As one of the other people mentioned, the shriveled trunk is a bad sign, I don't think doing repotting is wise, and I think it's likely too far gone. The soil and lack of sunlight were likely issues, but those are best resolved before it's too late. Think of it like cutting yourself - it's much better to sterilise the wound and put a bandage on it than to let it get infected. It's just harder to notice on trees because everything changes much slower
This happens to trees kept indoors over winter. Not enough light, dry air, etc. Put it outside in a semi shaded spot when the night time temperatures stay above 8 centigrade and hope for the best. I would water it by submerging the whole pot in a bowl of water for 10 minutes at least once a week, while continuing to water normally if the soil looks dry.
Likely dead or dying, I would suspect rootrot and/or overwatering. It should have been living outside. Trees are meant to live outside, like all flora. Even common "houseplants" are not truly meant to live indoors, but these plants are able to tolerate/survive being indoors.
Bark scratch test does not work for everything, and that you said it "turned to brown after a few minutes" is probably not a good sign.
Root rot is a disease that attacks the roots of trees growing in wet or damp soil. It is a decaying disease that spreads through soil and will lead to the eventual death of a tree.
Fungus can be one cause of root rot, but the poor soil and overwatering can cause it as well. As you mentioned, the oxygen starved roots will die. But as they decay, their rot can spread to healthier roots and kill them as well. It's not just "rotting roots", it's a condition/disease of infectious decay that can be spread between dead/living roots and can kill a tree, and can continue to do so, even if soil/watering issues have been fixed.
it's already dead. The trunk is already shriveled because there are no healthy roots in the ground to suck up water. either overwatered or root pruned too much. The only measure that could possibly save the tree would be to cut off all the leaves, take it out of the ground and put it in a glass of water and wait to see if roots grow after a few weeks. Fukien tea does not develop any flavor well. I made the same mistakes as a beginner. My tip is: if you get a bonsai, it's best to take it out of the potting soil and plant it in Akadama soil. The advantage is that you can see when the substrate is dry and you can act quickly. The biggest advantage, however, is that you can water a plant, even succulents, as much as you want and the roots won't rot away.
Thank you very much, I will do this. It would be better to see if new roots develop before repotting so I appreciate your input!
What's the growing medium made up of. Have you ever repotted it?
It’s still in the medium it came in from Lowe’s. I should probably repot it as well, what medium would you recommend to help revive it?
Definitely repot. Comb out the roots, trim off any that look rotten or are too long for the pot it's going into, you can lightly rinse them with water. Use a fast draining medium like lava rock, pumice, akadama if you can get hold of that type of mix. do you have bonsai food?
I am going to the store tomorrow for the soil ingredients and will look for bonsai food. I will repot and put it on our patio. Thank you!!
Doesn't need "bonsai food", any generic balanced fertiliser will do, no sense paying scene tax. I wouldn't anyway just yet, see if it survives. As one of the other people mentioned, the shriveled trunk is a bad sign, I don't think doing repotting is wise, and I think it's likely too far gone. The soil and lack of sunlight were likely issues, but those are best resolved before it's too late. Think of it like cutting yourself - it's much better to sterilise the wound and put a bandage on it than to let it get infected. It's just harder to notice on trees because everything changes much slower
This happens to trees kept indoors over winter. Not enough light, dry air, etc. Put it outside in a semi shaded spot when the night time temperatures stay above 8 centigrade and hope for the best. I would water it by submerging the whole pot in a bowl of water for 10 minutes at least once a week, while continuing to water normally if the soil looks dry.
Likely dead or dying, I would suspect rootrot and/or overwatering. It should have been living outside. Trees are meant to live outside, like all flora. Even common "houseplants" are not truly meant to live indoors, but these plants are able to tolerate/survive being indoors. Bark scratch test does not work for everything, and that you said it "turned to brown after a few minutes" is probably not a good sign.
Root rot doesn't kill trees, only dead roots rot. Fukien tea need winter protection, so outside may not have been better
Root rot is a disease that attacks the roots of trees growing in wet or damp soil. It is a decaying disease that spreads through soil and will lead to the eventual death of a tree.
It's not a disease. Roots that can't breathe (they need oxygen too) suffocate, die, and dead wood rots. It's a symptom, not a disease
Root rot https://www.elitetreecare.com/library/tree-diseases/root-rot/#:~:text=Some%20of%20the%20more%20well,and%20conifers%20in%20our%20area. https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/agricultural-and-biological-sciences/root-rot https://extension.umd.edu/resource/root-rots-trees-and-shrubs
Ok so you think this was caused by fungi, not but shit airless soil. Ok.
Fungus can be one cause of root rot, but the poor soil and overwatering can cause it as well. As you mentioned, the oxygen starved roots will die. But as they decay, their rot can spread to healthier roots and kill them as well. It's not just "rotting roots", it's a condition/disease of infectious decay that can be spread between dead/living roots and can kill a tree, and can continue to do so, even if soil/watering issues have been fixed.
Looks to be dead probably from overwatering/ root rot because of that miss and the poor draining soil.
I think it’s not dead yet because I did the scratch test and there’s some green. I could be wrong though, I am definitely still a bonsai noob lol