Newly Purchased Elm, poor roots, concerns about rot/fungus

[EPM]

I bought this little chinese elm from a bonsai nursery. In hindsight I wish I hadn't. I'm still fairly new and trying to figure things out but I got it home and noticed that the base of the tree seemed moist and soft looking. After poking around in the soil a little, there were even pieces of root I discovered that seemed to just crumble. It just didn't seem right, and there was an odor coming from the pot (although that could have been the organic fertilizer the nursery was using) and I was concerned about crown rot and the health of the roots. So I repotted the tree. You can see pictures of the tree but my first impressions were that the roots were in terrible shape. I repotted it in a fairly coarse mixture and I've been trying to keep the soil away from the base of the tree as much as possible to hopefully dry it out. The plastic training pot I used is also deeper than the one it came in, in hopes of lowering the moisture down at the surface. I only have a picture of the repotted tree. The soil it came potted in from the nursery was OK although it didn't seem like they had sifted the fines which were settled at the bottom of the pot. The only other thing I've noticed is a few leaves with black spots at the tip (see picture).

Anyways, what do you think? Is there a problem? Was the tree being watered improperly? Is there anything else I can do to help this tree along? Should I complain to the nursery? Are the black spots on the tips of the leaves indicative of a fungal infection or not? Although the price wasn't exorbitant, for what I paid I would have expected the roots to be in better shape.

Thanks for your help.

 

[sorce]

E P M.

Elm Post Mortem.

Don't regret anything!

Sorce

 

[EPM]

LOL @ Elm Post Mortem! No regrets. It's a learning process. Thanks Sorce.

 

[sorce]

LOL @ Elm Post Mortem! No regrets. It's a learning process. Thanks Sorce.

That's a lot to read so I haven't...gotta go stare at a tree!

But keep at this one...it's nice!

Sorce

 

[Zach Smith]

I bought this little chinese elm from a bonsai nursery. In hindsight I wish I hadn't. I'm still fairly new and trying to figure things out but I got it home and noticed that the base of the tree seemed moist and soft looking. After poking around in the soil a little, there were even pieces of root I discovered that seemed to just crumble. It just didn't seem right, and there was an odor coming from the pot (although that could have been the organic fertilizer the nursery was using) and I was concerned about crown rot and the health of the roots. So I repotted the tree. You can see pictures of the tree but my first impressions were that the roots were in terrible shape. I repotted it in a fairly coarse mixture and I've been trying to keep the soil away from the base of the tree as much as possible to hopefully dry it out. The plastic training pot I used is also deeper than the one it came in, in hopes of lowering the moisture down at the surface. I only have a picture of the repotted tree. The soil it came potted in from the nursery was OK although it didn't seem like they had sifted the fines which were settled at the bottom of the pot. The only other thing I've noticed is a few leaves with black spots at the tip (see picture).

Anyways, what do you think? Is there a problem? Was the tree being watered improperly? Is there anything else I can do to help this tree along? Should I complain to the nursery? Are the black spots on the tips of the leaves indicative of a fungal infection or not? Although the price wasn't exorbitant, for what I paid I would have expected the roots to be in better shape.

Thanks for your help.

I think you should send the nursery a thank you note for not selling you one of those horrid S-curves. Seriously. The tree's not in awful shape though it appears to have been overwatered. Nothing you can't remedy. Let it alone the rest of this year, feed for fall and repot in spring. Don't love it too much this year (or ever, really).

 

[EPM]

Thanks Zach. It was a legitimate bonsai nursery. Didn't see any S curves there and thought I was going to get a healthy plant. However, they have hundreds of plants to keep healthy which I'm assuming is no small task. I'm assuming every now and then one slips through the cracks. I like the tree so I'm hoping to keep it alive. I will heed your advice and leave the tree be. No more assaults after the repot I did. I'm also planning to keep it out of the rain and applying water only the soil keeping water off the trunk to the extent I can. Thanks for the advice.

 

[milehigh_7]

I was going to say that it really does not look too bad. Give it a 1:15 (or a little weaker) water : peroxide solution every week or 2. That will keep that fungus, and fungus gnats at bay and oxygenate those roots.

 

[EPM]

I was going to say that it really does not look too bad. Give it a 1:15 (or a little weaker) water : peroxide solution every week or 2. That will keep that fungus, and fungus gnats at bay and oxygenate those roots.

Thanks. I've never heard of using peroxide like that before. It makes sense though. So the final solution is something like 0.1% actual peroxide if using 3% peroxide from the store?

 

[Zach Smith]

Thanks Zach. It was a legitimate bonsai nursery. Didn't see any S curves there and thought I was going to get a healthy plant. However, they have hundreds of plants to keep healthy which I'm assuming is no small task. I'm assuming every now and then one slips through the cracks. I like the tree so I'm hoping to keep it alive. I will heed your advice and leave the tree be. No more assaults after the repot I did. I'm also planning to keep it out of the rain and applying water only the soil keeping water off the trunk to the extent I can. Thanks for the advice.

Chinese elms are really great bonsai subjects. The reason they appear as S-curves so frequently is that the species does not put on taper without years of effort. That translates to cost, and the S-curve Chinese elm is all about cheap.

Good luck with yours.