Chinese Elm losing leaves with brown tips

[oddalle]

Hi! I'm very new to bonsai. I just received a 10-year-old Chinese Elm two weeks ago. I was worried that the shipping would hurt the tree since it took a week to get to me due to delivery delays; I was worried about under watering and potentially dried-out roots. But when I received it, the bonsai still had moisture in the soil and everything looked good at first. I may have been over watering the first few days (I watered it every night), but then I started to notice leaf tips turning brown and falling off of both old and new shoots (it's surprised me by having a lot of new growth despite having dying leaves). I got a moisture meter and checked the soil more often and have now been watering every 2-3 days. It does sit in indirect sunlight everyday (pictures show the lighting). Leaf tips are still browning and falling. I've attached pictures.

Yesterday I cut off some of the new growth since it was getting a bit crazy looking with new shoots growing larger leaves and I also added fertilizer for the first time hoping that might help. I'm not sure if there's just stress from being in a new environment or what I can do to help it if something's wrong, so any insight is greatly appreciated!

 

[Housguy]

Is the tree living indoors? If so, that is where your problem mostly lies unless you have a very nice lighting setup, very hard to keep these trees alive indoors, get outdoors asap, should turn around.

 

[oddalle]

Is the tree living indoors? If so, that is where your problem mostly lies unless you have a very nice lighting setup, very hard to keep these trees alive indoors, get outdoors asap, should turn around.

The tree was living indoors on the kitchen table, but the kitchen is well lit (indirectly) with white light filtering curtains on the sun-facing side of the house. I did just move the bonsai to the window ledge so it's in direct sunlight now.

 

[Housguy]

That is better, but unfortunately elms do not survive indoors and it will eventually perish unless you can get it outdoors. I live on the opposite coast from you, but elms should be pretty hardy and probably will be fine in NY weather. I am sure a New Yorker will chime in about elms and your climate. Good luck!

 

[Thomas J.]

Chinese elms should be outside at all times until the temps get to around freezing, then placing them in an unheated garage should suffice until the temps go back above freezing. Trees are outdoor plants and need the humidity of the air, indoors are too dry for them and they will suffer and soon die.