I just got a maple trident bonsai for my birthday. I've read that a lot of
people end up killing their trees the first time around but I really dont
plan on it.

Anyway, its february right now and this tree has all its leaves... should it
have lost them? I'm wondering if the place it was bought at used artificial
light and it thinks it is summer right now.

In that case, should i continue using artificial light with it? What about
dormant stages? Doesn't it need to go out and sit in the cold? I live in
British Columbia, Canada, and it gets fairly cold but i doubt i'll see any
temps below 0 degrees ceclius from now on.

Is it too late to expose it to winter now? Will it die if it doesn't get
some dormant time? I've had it since yesterday, last night i kept it inside
with a compact florescent over it and it sitting on a tray of water, then in
the morning i let it sit out in the sun all day, and now i've put it back
inside with the light and tray.

I've picked up a book from the library and plan to talk to the store owners
on monday, but until then can anyone give me some tips and possibly answer
my questions about dormancy?

Thanks.