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Hello I joined this forum to get some tips on a poor looking Ulmus parvifolia 'Seiju Dwarf'. I am not familiar with the hobby of bonsai plants, but I inherited one unexpectedly.

The plant is part of a small table top fairy garden that belonged to a family member who has passed away. No one was interested in it and I felt it deserved at least a chance to continue. I have no greenthumb but the other plants (stonecrop, perenial flowers) look good. The small Ulmus parvifolia does look very poor though.

From as much as I can tell the fairy garden has always been outdoors. The Seiju is only a couple years old and I wouldnt consider it an active bonsai more like one that was planted and forgotten. It is planted in the general soil of the entire fairy garden. The fairy garden dirt looks like average potting mix, dirt and perlite. I know there were bags of Fox Farm dirt, cactus mix and seedling mix at the home when I picked up the garden.

It is in the US state of Ohio right on the border of zone 6a and 5b according to the zone map. Snowy and cold winters and this recent winter did have negative temperatures.

Within the last month the weather has been up and down with 85 degree days and also 50-60 degree cold fronts off and on. Today is cold and windy and within two days it will be back to 80 degrees, typical Ohio rollercoaster weather.

Since it has been neglected until I claimed it, I believe it has survived off of rain water. With a stretch of rainy weather it has probably received too much and I have moved it to where it is blocked from rain so it can dry out. I have not watered or fertilized it as drying out is the priority.

It has dead brown leaves and dry branches that snap off with just a touch, but also has green sprouts in some areas.

I'm looking for any advice to resurrect and keep this bonsai alive as best as I can. Once it dries out I'm unsure of the next best step.

Thank you

I have attached photos

Hello and welcome. First of all this is an international forum where we use international units. For most of us negative temperatures is not that bad, but 80 will kill everything living.

Your tree looks like all outdoor ulmus in cold temperate climate in spring. If the trees in nature is not in full leaf yet, this is perfectly normal. Buds popping everywhere. Now is not the time to dry out the tree, that season is over when the tree looks like that. Now it needs to stay moist all the way until authum.

Given that the pot is draining it is very hard to overwater ulmus this time of the year.

Hello and thank you for your quick reply. I apologize for not being more clear with the temperatures. In this Winter I believe the lowest temperature in my area was -20?C. And by 60 and 80?F I should have also included 15 and 27?C.

The trees on my property seem fully leafed to me. I have attached a photo of my backyard because I am not sure what constitutes fully leafed.

While the box does have drainage holes it was soaking wet when I found it. I had assumed with the rainy month we have had that it has stayed consistently soaked. Should I still leave it out of the rain so that I can control the watering?

Is the pot draining well? If you water abundantly, will it flow out of the drainage holes?

It is a little bit confusing to me. But maybe the cold winter made it slower than trees here in northern Europe zone 7?

Tree looks healthy to me, but small screen, blurry picture and old eyes may fool me.

We have had similar wacky weather. Usually the trees all leaf out by mid March but the temperature swings discouraged leafing and a couple stopped growing leaves. They are mostly out now, but there is a baobab that has just a few stubs out.

There is not a lot to do except wait, water, fertilize, and hope.

In any way. Elms shedding their leafs in authum or winter and regrow them in spring is perfectly normal in your conditions. Since it seems like it is well on the way to leaf out, I dont see any reason for concern. Just learn how to care for it this season.