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Originally Posted by Beano
Hi,
I posted once before but was not able to see any replies so hopefully
it will work this time!
I have 2 bonsai which I set up myself. One is a Melaleuca snowfire and
the other is a dwarf lilly pilly. I kind of forgot to water recently
for about 4 days, but I figured it would be ok since it was raining
occasionally throughout that time period. I was also very busy and
away from my house so I didn't check on them. Anyway, yesterday, the
leaves on both have dried and wilted and lost some green. They aren't
brown, but I suspect they might fall off.
Sorry if it's a dumb question, but we are in Autumn now and the nights
are getting cooler, is it possible that the leaves are just dropping
because they are deciduous? Are they deciduous even? I thought they
were. I hope they will be ok.
I have had issues with these trees before not getting enough light -
the leaves did the same thing as they are doing now. I put them
outside and new leaves came along so it turned out ok. Hope that
happens again this time!!
Any ideas for keeping them stress free in the mean time?
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Hi Beano,
Yes, Acmenia Smithii var Minor is an Australian native.
As far as I know, none of the Lilly Pilly species whether they be Acmenia, Syzigium, or Eugenia are deciduous and most are pretty hardy. All trees do end up dropping leaves, but if they all went at once - especially in conjunction with the Melaleuca, then I would say it was severe lack of water that caused it. Most Lilly Pillys can stand a fair amount of stress so if there is still green under the bark, then I would suggest it will re-shoot again. Most Melaleucas on the other hand are not so hardy, and they do need very moist conditions. As an aside, if you ever decide to buy a block of bushland - or even a bare suburban block that hasn't been cleared, look for stands of Paperbark Melaleucas. If there are any then it is an indication that the ground gets very boggy or is prone to flooding. Most Melaleucas only have leaves on the tips of the branches and few will shoot from old wood, so unless the one you have does shoot from old wood it may not survive the ordeal. With a lot of Melaleucas, if you prune back to old wood, you have just created tomorrows firewood. You did mention that it recovered once before so hopefully it will again. Lilly Pilly species are excellent Bonsai material - Most have small leaves or will readily reduce in size, the branches and even the trunks are fairly pliable, they readily shoot, can be air-layered, and lend themselves to just about all styles of Bonsai. Good luck with your two trees, let us know if they do recover, be interesting to know.
Regards,
TinanaTaffy