Need help with Syzygium!

[Lydia]

I have had my Syzygium since October and thought it was doing fine. I keep it indoors (I know technically there is no such thing as an indoor bonsai tree but it was doing okay) South facing window, trying not to have the room too warm. Over Christmas I had to leave it for a few weeks whilst visiting family and was not able to water it. Is there any hope for my bonsai? I have given it a really good water and check the dampness of the soil every day. I also mist the leaves. How can I aid its recovery whilst also not overwatering? I assume it just really dried out while I was away but don't know the best approach to go from here. Included pics for reference- the top part of the tree is the most dark and crispy, I assume because it's the furthest point to get water to. There are some healthy looking leaves on the sides and when I scratched away a little bit of trunk bark it was green, so I know the tree is still alive! My lovely moss on the soil of the pot has also gone dark brown, which I assume is another sign of lack of water.
I have also been trying to figure out if the net curtain, seen in the pictures, is helpful (to prevent the sun scorching the tree) or actually prevents light from getting to the tree.
The first picture is from November for reference, and the last three are from today.
Please help! It was a birthday present and I would be so sad if it died. It's my first bonsai tree and as a beginner feel out of my depth!

 

[Gabler]

Adding your approximate location to your profile would help. I'm guessing based on your use of the word "whilst" that you're in the UK? If so, there is pretty much zero risk of scorching your tree in the sun at this time of year (and probably even in the summer). In addition, window glass significantly reduces the intensity of sunlight, so you don't want to do anything else that will reduce the light any further.

As for your lapse in watering, the only thing you can do now is continue to water the tree and wait. Be careful not to overwater. Now that the tree has lost some of its leaves, it will not be able to use as much water. In addition, if the roots dried out, some of them may have died, and the tree will have a reduced ability to absorb the water you give it. Let the surface of the soil get dry between waterings, but don't let the soil dry out completely.

 

[Lydia]

Impressive to figure out my location from that! Thanks for the info on light, I'll make sure it can access the sunlight better. The person I got the bonsai from said to water by soaking/fully immersing the root system and soil, but I've been reading that it's not best to do this every time. Wondering which watering approach is best for this period? Thanks!!

 

[Gabler]

Impressive to figure out my location from that! Thanks for the info on light, I'll make sure it can access the sunlight better. The person I got the bonsai from said to water by soaking/fully immersing the root system and soil, but I've been reading that it's not best to do this every time. Wondering which watering approach is best for this period? Thanks!!

That's a great way to water. The excess will drain out the bottom of the pot, and the soil will be evenly moist. Most of us have too many trees to for that, so we water from above to save time.

 

[Lydia]

I have had my Syzygium since October and thought it was doing fine. I keep it indoors (I know technically there is no such thing as an indoor bonsai tree but it was doing okay) South facing window, trying not to have the room too warm. Over Christmas I had to leave it for a few weeks whilst visiting family and was not able to water it. Is there any hope for my bonsai? I have given it a really good water and check the dampness of the soil every day. I also mist the leaves. How can I aid its recovery whilst also not overwatering? I assume it just really dried out while I was away but don't know the best approach to go from here. Included pics for reference- the top part of the tree is the most dark and crispy, I assume because it's the furthest point to get water to. There are some healthy looking leaves on the sides and when I scratched away a little bit of trunk bark it was green, so I know the tree is still alive! My lovely moss on the soil of the pot has also gone dark brown, which I assume is another sign of lack of water.
I have also been trying to figure out if the net curtain, seen in the pictures, is helpful (to prevent the sun scorching the tree) or actually prevents light from getting to the tree.
The first picture is from November for reference, and the last three are from today.
Please help! It was a birthday present and I would be so sad if it died. It's my first bonsai tree and as a beginner feel out of my depth!
View attachment 580057View attachment 580058View attachment 580059View attachment 580061

Update: very sad bonsai tree.
I have been taking the advice given and trying to help my bonsai bounce back...however it's only got worse! For watering I'm making sure it goes from wet, freshly watered, to just barely damp/just dry- I did wonder whether I was overwatering as I noticed white stuff on my bark and a bit of the moss on the soil, but actually now think it is mineral deposits or something from my hard tap water, so am considering filtered water or collecting rain water. I don't think I'm overwatering! But I'm also ensuring it doesn't dry out again fully. I'm trying to give it time- hopefully with increased sunlight and warmer days going into spring/summer it will enter into a season of recovery and growth. But it looks pretty bad! Is anyone able to speak into what's going on and whether I should be doing anything differently?
I popped it outside just to take a really good look at it and photograph in better light but the golden hour sun makes it looks a lot more brown than it is

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

If you have any green at all, keep watering, it may recover. Syzygium normally want to be lightly moist, never bone dry. That couple weeks that it dried out over Christmas could be fatal. But if any green at all pops, keep watering it, it may eventually recover. But if there is no green at all by the end of the month, it probably is toast. Unfortunately. Members of the guava family are not drought tolerant. They can not be allowed to get bone dry over holidays. They are not like cactus.

but one can hope. Keep watering it for a while, see if it pops a couple buds.

 

[Lydia]

Thanks for the advice. Should I prune the dead branches?

 

[bennificentlee]

Hi Lydia
I hope you would allow sharing and i could learned as much from your thread.

I bought myself one would be equally sad if I fail to see it blossom

I have had mine for close to 2 months now
Started noticing the burnt like leaves about a month ago
Learnt that it is a bonsai nature that requires a lot of watering late
Soaked it once a week and witnessed the bubbling effect
But the burnt effect on the leaves seen no improvements

Last night out of desperation I had it soaked once 7 days in mixed tap water with 10ml of Heineken beer today seen no better of it

What am I to do?
I have the same questions too
Mean time should I prune it's burnt leaves?