larke: I live in SE Pennsylvania. The plant is currently on a windowsill (I live in an apartment), but I'm hoping once May rolls around I'll be able to keep it outside. And the moss is gone. (That's exactly what I was talking about; I got at least three different answers as to whether or not it should stay when I was researching on my own.) Thank you. :) Bob: Wow. Um...how am I even supposed to respond to this. Could it be that, perhaps, simply Googling turned up amateur sites I didn't know if I could trust, and academic searches turned up information too advanced for me to understand? I never claimed to be a botanist. I can admit when I know too little, and ask for help--which is why I came here in the first place, only to be mocked by a miserable human being who gets his jollies teasing a stranger over nothing. Wonderful.

Hi - Junipers are certainly outdoor trees (well, everything is of course, but tropicals alone would need to be kept indoors in N. American winters - all others out for life. I have no idea what a wet-dry-wet cycle is - never heard of it in relation to bonsai (or anything else - nor Tango Uniform for that matter, tho' I could take a guess at that one), but what matters is that junipers need to be watered only when they need it, never to a schedule and most of the time that translates into allowing close to all of the mix getting dry between (decent) waterings from above, never by immersion. Water slowly so it sinks in and all roots get some, til it reaches the drain holes, but make sure you don't let the pot sit in drain water or roots will rot. Keep a chopstick in the mix (til you know better) between the pot and trunk, and use it like a dipstick to judge wetness. Your tree will need repotting into a mostly grit mix, never potting soil that's full of peat that never dries well. Go to www.bonsaisite.com's Soil forum for more information, but you'll have to depend on the chopstick til late fall or winter, because it's the wrong time of year to be changing the soil mix (or trimming roots). Once you have repotted though, watering will be easier as the mix will drain immediately, making it harder to overwater, because very little water will be left in the soil. You have to start thinking like a tree :-) rather than a house or garden plant!

First, it's a fallacy that succulents like to go dry before you water them. Succulents PREFER an evenly moist soil. The problem is they react poorly to saturated soil, so if your soil supports any significant amount of perched water, you have a problem. Succulents gone dry suffer drought stress just like other plants. Fortunately, they generally tolerate that stress a little better than other commonly grown houseplants, and are able to recover. That built in ability to TOLERATE, shouldn't be taken as a preference. Plants tolerate a lot they don't like. If you have foliage at the ends of branches, you need to determine what's causing it. The big 3 are low light, low N supply, and root congestion. If roots are congested, it won't matter how much light or N you supply, the growth will tend to concentrate near apices and your plant will have that 'poodle' look; so be thinking 'repot' if the plant needs it, and around Father's day is a good time to do it. You can use the Miracle-Gro. It's a fine fertilizer for containerized plants. For bonsai though, fertilizers that get their N from nitrate sources are better because they tend to keep growth compact by reducing internode length and keeping leaves smaller. If you DO use the MG, you'll need to be sure your plants are getting an adequate supply of Ca & Mg, because they are lacking in the MG. If you're making your own soil and didn't use lime (dolomite), you'll need to address this issue. I won't get to deeply into it until I find out what you're using for soil. Avoid watering in sips. The practice ensures that soluble salts will build up in the soil, causing a drought reaction that could cause shedding of foliage and branches, or poor looking foliage and poor growth. Use a soil that allows you to flush the soil when you water. For bonsai, nothing else is appropriate and will lead to problems. You can review pictures upthread. Soils like Josh, Parabellum, and I use will all please you and your plant. A picture would be nice ..... Al

I have used the same model for a couple years now. I generally use Leso products, (more pelletized than Scotts..But I generally run 5-7 ft apart, most of the ferts I set the spreader at 14-15. Earthway's web site has a settings chart if you look up the model. Lesco also has the settings for their ferts if you look on "spreader settings" Its a good spreader and spreads very evenly for the price Dan T