Bloomin' Blog

Ask The Plant Expert:

I received this Bonsai plant as a gift about 10 days ago. I don’t know what kind of plant it is, and don’t know how to keeping and taking care of. There are some problems with it; it’s leaves fall down every day in a large number, both young leaves and old leaves. Also in these recent days, some of its leaves are wilting. Here the weather is cool so I water it once a week. I put it about 1/5 meter away of the window. The room is light, but there is no straight sun light on it. I attached a photo of its location too. Please help me with its wilting and the leaves falling down. Please guide me how to taking care of it and a perfect location for it. And please tell me my plant’s name.
Looking forward your answer
Gisou

Flower Shop Network Plant Expert Reply: Gisou,
I believe what you have is a type of jade. If I had to guess what the problem is with your plant, I would put my bet on transplant shock coupled with a water issue. Check you soil and make sure it isn’t too wet. The leaves have the ability to store water. If the soil is kept too wet, the plant will get root rot and the leaves will fall off. So let the soil dry slightly before you water it. This type of plant requires a very stable temperature range. Make sure that it is not in the pathway of a door or air vent. You can give it a slight bit of fertilizer once a month from March through November. Be sure not to over-fertilize it. Too much fertilizer can cause severe damage.

One more thing to check is the position of the bonsai. If it is too high in the pot, the plant could be drying out which can cause the leaves to drop.  I don’t think this is a problem, but it is hard to tell from the pictures.

I hope this information was helpful. Please let me know if I can help with anything else.