Very sick Pine? (i think it’s a pine?)

[HannaLawless]

I’m sad to be posting this. Two years ago we purchased a home with an old outdoor bonsai pine tree? reported to be over 100 years old.

About a month ago, I noticed some of the needles turning brown/brittle. This problem does not seem to be going away although I have increased the watering. We have been having hotter than usual summers in the PNW (Tacoma, Wa).

However I just don’t know if the problem is so simple. This is also a photo of the trunk which is powdery white in spots and the exterior bark is just so brittle and easy to remove by hand.

Some clumps (of shape) seem to be harder hit than others.. a few almost totally brown now. This certainly didn’t happen last summer, I don’t recall much of a drop at all as Id thought this was an evergreen.

Can anyone offer any words of wisdom or treatment plan to someone who knows next to nothing about bonsai... I really just don’t want this tree to die. I’m having a hard time sorting through information and figuring out what is really going on and what i can do.

Thanks

 

[Lazylightningny]

Yikes, looks pretty sick. This is planted in the ground? I'd prune off the dead foliage carefully and hit the rest with a good fungicide, once a week. Get rid of the pruned foliage so it's nowhere near other plants.

Can you see any tiny bugs hiding in the foliage anywhere?

 

[HannaLawless]

thank you... yeah, i don’t think the white stuff is lichen. seems more like possibly mold.. it’s very dry, ashy, powdery. originally after researching i thought it was maybe fungal. then i reached out to a master gardener who just told me to water more... although that doesn’t seem to be making a difference as the brown keeps spreading. i’m really sad about this. it’s nearing the end of summer... should i prune now? i had thought maybe i should wait til dormant season. but i will definitely hit it with a fungicide. it is planted outside. i have seen no bugs but i will take a deeper look tomorrow.

 

[River's Edge]

I’m sad to be posting this. Two years ago we purchased a home with an old outdoor bonsai pine tree? reported to be over 100 years old.

About a month ago, I noticed some of the needles turning brown/brittle. This problem does not seem to be going away although I have increased the watering. We have been having hotter than usual summers in the PNW (Tacoma, Wa).

However I just don’t know if the problem is so simple. This is also a photo of the trunk which is powdery white in spots and the exterior bark is just so brittle and easy to remove by hand.

Some clumps (of shape) seem to be harder hit than others.. a few almost totally brown now. This certainly didn’t happen last summer, I don’t recall much of a drop at all as Id thought this was an evergreen.

Can anyone offer any words of wisdom or treatment plan to someone who knows next to nothing about bonsai... I really just don’t want this tree to die. I’m having a hard time sorting through information and figuring out what is really going on and what i can do.

Thanks

It is a fir tree. See response in the other thread.

 

[bonsaichile]

First, it is not a bonsai tree, as it is planted in the ground. Bonsais are always planted in pots. The advice people can give you for a tree in the ground is completely different. I would not increase the watering, as a rule, pines prefer less water, and since it is already in the ground, it will need even less than a pine in a pot. I would check for mites or other pest. Put a piece of white paper under a branch and shake it vigorously. If you have mites, you will see tiny crawlers in the paper (you might benefit from using a magnifying glass). I hope this helps!