HELP PLS!! I'm scared im killing my bonsai (serissa flora-plena double snow rose) :(

[lucieisrllycool]

Location - northern Virginia

I just got this bonsai tree a couple of days ago (as a gift) so I am learning as I go but I have been seeing different people saying different things and I am hoping to get help for my specific situation. Where I am, it has been below freezing (in the teens to twenties Fahrenheit) but I had originally placed it right by my window to get lots of sun. I then thought it might be to cold and moved it a little farther from the window, but still close to it so it can get sun. It's a little close to the heater but not right next to it. The flowers started shriveling up and one leaf is yellow. I am not sure what I can do to help it, please send ideas! Should I move it completely away from the window? Also, I have been misting it with water to keep the soil moist, should I be watering it more?? less?? im really lost here pls help

 

[Orion_metalhead]

Welcome. Serissa are finnicky and not an easy beginner tree.

Can you take some clear photos of the tree, nebari (where the trunk meets the soil), soil condition, and leaves?

What are your watering habits other than misting it?

 

[yashu]

Many trees have an adjustment period when moved to a new environment, ficus are notorious for this but I’m not sure about serissa. Misting will shorten the life of the flowers but is probably beneficial to the foliage if the heater is drying the air in your house. Desiccation is something to be wary of for tropicals kept indoors in the winter. The tree was probably fine in the window, they can handle 50°F without much issue. Without seeing your set up I would guess that being near the heater is possibly more damaging than being in the window. Here’s a decent care sheet for your tree;

http://bonsaioutlet.com/content/Serissa-Bonsai-Care-from-BonsaiOutlet.pdf

 

[lucieisrllycool]

Thanks so much for replying!! here are some pics, let me know if you need more or a different angle

 

[lucieisrllycool]

Many trees have an adjustment period when moved to a new environment, ficus are notorious for this but I’m not sure about serissa. Misting will shorten the life of the flowers but is probably beneficial to the foliage if the heater is drying the air in your house. Desiccation is something to be wary of for tropicals kept indoors in the winter. The tree was probably fine in the window, they can handle 50°F without much issue. Without seeing your set up I would guess that being near the heater is possibly more damaging than being in the window. Here’s a decent care sheet for your tree;

http://bonsaioutlet.com/content/Serissa-Bonsai-Care-from-BonsaiOutlet.pdf

thanks so much for your reply, this is how close it is to my heater. Do you think this is too close

 

[lucieisrllycool]

Welcome. Serissa are finnicky and not an easy beginner tree.

Can you take some clear photos of the tree, nebari (where the trunk meets the soil), soil condition, and leaves?

What are your watering habits other than misting it?

Hi! I just attached some photos earlier in the thread, thought I was replying but accidentally just made a new message (sorry im new to the website) I have been misting it so I wouldn't overwater it. I came home and it looked pretty dry so I gave it about 2.5 fl oz

 

[yashu]

The tree looks pretty good to me. The flower bud in the third photo looks plump and healthy and it’s potted in decent soil.

Touching the soil can give you a better reading than just eyeballing it as sometimes the top will look dry but under that initial layer of dry media it can remain damp. When you water the tree water it until the water comes out the bottom so that the entire soil column get wet, the amount you water is less important than that you water the tree thoroughly to ensure there are no dry pockets in the soil. Be sure the soil sufficiently dries before watering again. The cycle of wet to mostly dry is more important than keeping the plant always wet. Watering can be the biggest challenge when you start this hobby. A good trick is to stick a short length of bamboo chopstick (like the kind that comes with Chinese takeout) into the soil and leave it there. When you want to check the moisture content of the soil you pull the chopstick and it will be apparent if the soil is wet, damp or dry. You don’t want wet and you don’t want dry. If the stick shows wet then don’t water. If it’s dry then water. Don’t let serissa go bone dry though, some plants are ok with this or will even thrive but serissa is not one of those so water when the stick is just slightly moist. Just remember that watering is not really based on schedule but rather when the plant needs it.

 

[lucieisrllycool]

The tree looks pretty good to me. The flower bud in the third photo looks plump and healthy and it’s potted in decent soil.

Touching the soil can give you a better reading than just eyeballing it as sometimes the top will look dry but under that initial layer of dry media it can remain damp. When you water the tree water it until the water comes out the bottom so that the entire soil column get wet, the amount you water is less important than that you water the tree thoroughly to ensure there are no dry pockets in the soil. Be sure the soil sufficiently dries before watering again. The cycle of wet to mostly dry is more important than keeping the plant always wet. Watering can be the biggest challenge when you start this hobby. A good trick is to stick a short length of bamboo chopstick (like the kind that comes with Chinese takeout) into the soil and leave it there. When you want to check the moisture content of the soil you pull the chopstick and it will be apparent if the soil is wet, damp or dry. You don’t want wet and you don’t want dry. If the stick shows wet then don’t water. If it’s dry then water. Don’t let serissa go bone dry though, some plants are ok with this or will even thrive but serissa is not one of those so water when the stick is just slightly moist. Just remember that watering is not really based on schedule but rather when the plant needs it.

WOW okay thank you so much!!! The flowers used to be fully bloomed and intact when I first got the tree but now they're looking sad. Is this still normal?

 

[Orion_metalhead]

Flowers do not last forever. On my fukien tea, the flowers open for about 2 days then dry up and fall off.

Serissa are similarly short lived.

Yashu said everything I would have said about watering.

 

[lucieisrllycool]

Flowers do not last forever. On my fukien tea, the flowers open for about 2 days then dry up and fall off.

Serissa are similarly short lived.

Yashu said everything I would have said about watering.

thank you both so much, I really appreciate all the help