Is my juniper still alive?

[TheWolski]

Um, did "putting it in the pot provided" entail removing some roots, was the tree barerooted?

Also working a newly potted juniper with wire, bending and the like is not a great idea. Repotting and wiring and pruning are all very stressful for conifers, including junipers. Moving too quickly is a common mistake for people just starting out. Doing all that all at once is probably a huge contributing factor if not the primary reason for the dead and dying foliage.

This may not be all the way dead--yet, but it's a good bet it will be soon. Sorry. Live and learn, every bonsaiist has had this happen at some point.

Yes I did remove some roots so it would fit into the pot provided. Also I didn't bareroot before planting. Beginners mistake?

 

[rockm]

How much root mass did you remove?

 

[TheWolski]

How much root mass did you remove?

Maybe about 1/4 of it? It really was not a lot since the plastic pot it was in wasn't very big compared to the blue pot it's in now.

 

[rockm]

Did you cut any big roots?

 

[TheWolski]

Did you cut any big roots?

No I don't believe I did.

 

[rockm]

even removing 1/4 from a root bound juniper can cause significant issues if the root mass is disturbed. You simply did too much all at once.

 

[Saddler]

Been there and done that. Repotting and then wiring has killed a couple junipers of mine. It also didn't kill a couple but every branch wired did die. Now I have more taper to the trunk and I get to figure out how to style them with that one branch left over. Live and learn. This makes me want to go to home depot and find a couple cheap junipers with a decent trunk to wire up because I repotted almost all my trees this year and nothing is left that can be wired. Get lots of trees so you always have something to work on. Home Depot here I come.

 

[Relknes]

It may be my imagination, but a few of the branches look like they might be pinned under the wire in a way that would cause them to die off. Improper wiring technique may be part of the reason you are losing some branches and not others. Another possibility is that the tree is shedding foliage that was being supported by the particular roots you cut, especially if you cut too many small "feeder" roots and left the larger roots in place.
You were also under-watering it, as others have pointed out. Depending on how hot your summer has been, that might have shown up already, or it might take a while longer. However, the tree does look alive to me, on account of the new buds...

 

[TheWolski]

It may be my imagination, but a few of the branches look like they might be pinned under the wire in a way that would cause them to die off. Improper wiring technique may be part of the reason you are losing some branches and not others. Another possibility is that the tree is shedding foliage that was being supported by the particular roots you cut, especially if you cut too many small "feeder" roots and left the larger roots in place.
You were also under-watering it, as others have pointed out. Depending on how hot your summer has been, that might have shown up already, or it might take a while longer. However, the tree does look alive to me, on account of the new buds...

Thanks for all of the feedback!

 

[rockm]

FWIW, if the rootball has been messed with in the last couple of weeks, it probably isn't taking much of anything. Constant watering will cause problems. You don't want to keep the soil soggy, but just damp. Watering is one of the trickiest parts of bonsai, especially with newly-repotted trees.

 

[TheWolski]

Well this little juniper is doing a lot better since last year when I got it. I guess I’m doing something right! Ha

 

[Wires_Guy_wires]

Sweet!