Bonsai Tree?

I even managed to kill my bamboo :spank:

Bonsai require very careful watering because of the tiny pots. It is typical of a ‘master’ teaching someone to train bonsai to let the student do the trimming and shaping but not the watering. Many of them also don’t do well in the house, so you need to be sure your suit the plant to your environment – the common evergreens are used to cold winters and even when dwarfed, don’t do well with the high heat and low humidity (which exacerbates the watering issue) of most modern houses in winter. You don’t want them to freeze, but they can handle cold better than people think. I had one for the better part for two years on a screened porch, but it died when we moved and could no longer keep it on an outdoor shelf. Some of the less traditional plants do better indoors, but I haven’t looked into the issue in years, so I can’t give a recommendation. Do, though, make sure if you’re buying a shaped tree that they don’t show damage from wires (or have ingrown wires). Wires are sometimes used to train the branch shapes but can damage the plant if they aren’t monitored.
The shaping is fun, and not particularly difficult. It just takes time.

My dear hubby has a friend whose wife is a bonsai artist. He asked her to make me a pomegranite bonsai and she did. It had pretty little flowers that were turning into fruit. I went on vacation and when I came back it was almost dead 😥
I was so bummed. It was the most perfect gift he’s ever given me. 😥

I have 3 bonsai. During the summer I keep all 3 outside. 2 of the trees, a Shimpaku Juniper and a Japanese Elm are kept outside year round. I live in Chicagoland, and these two trees need to go dormant in the cold Chicago winters. The juniper I have had for a year and a half, and last winter it’s normally green needles turned dark red. I was kind of concerned for it, but come spring the needles turned deep green again. Right now they are starting to turn red once more. The elm is a newer tree and its leaves turned yellow about a month ago and now they all fell off. I am confident this is normal autumn behavior and the leaves will return in the spring. One of my trees is a tropical species and cannot be outside in temperatures under 35 degrees F. I keep forgetting the name of this tree, but I have it indoors right now right next to a window. So you just have to be careful and do some research on the tree you have. I haven’t done much with shaping the trees yet, as that is an art in itself that I need to learn more about. The juniper did have a wire on it when I bought it, and I was told to cut it off after a couple months, which I did. I water the trees almost every day in the summer, but in the winter the trees outdoors do not need as much water while they are dormant. The indoor tree I water about every other day. Hope this helps 🙂
~Heather