I'll try and be quick about this. I'm a rambler. I liked bonsai as a kid but lacked the discipline. Now I'm older and want to try again. Been thinking about them lately. Doing research. During a visit with my mother I mentioned them. Somehow we got around to tree age, and I mentioned how cool it would be to find an old juniper bush someone was removing and styling it. I wanted to buy a small nursery juniper and practice on it for a few years before really jumping in. Learning, making mistakes, growing. My mother missed that part of the conversation apparently. She showed up at 9pm earlier with her neighbors juniper bush. They ripped it out for some reason or another and she brought it to me. It's not as old as I would've collected but the sentiment was nice. A few problems. I have almost no bonsai experience. I have zero collection experience. And I think they actually ripped it from the ground. This bush has... Very few roots. Almost none really. And I don't have the experience to coax it back to health on my own. So I turn to you guys for advice. I'd really like to get it to live. Here's what I know about juniper. They don't like wet roots. Every time I see them growing they seem to be in nutrient poor fast draining soil. They do like wet needles? They seem to grow better in foggy areas here. And that's about it. I had no appropriate soil on hand, so I tried to make an open mix with perlite, bark, and cactus mix. I watered right after potting... bad idea? Better suggestions? I'm keeping it in a shady spot for now. I don't think full summer sun will help it's condition. Is that bad? My instinct is to do what I would do with my garden plants and trim it back so there's less plant. Would that detriment the juniper too much? Should I trim any major branches I know I won't use? Would rooting harmone help? Fertiliser? Seems like fertiliser would hurt it. It had two very large roots that were sheared through. Should I have sealed them before potting? I potted it right away for fear of the roots drying out. But now I fear root rot. It would be nice to get it to live. That way down the line I'll actually get to sit down and see if it has any bonsai potential. I have some photos but they aren't great since my mom showed up at night and I wanted it potted right away. I can take better ones tomorrow if anyone wishes. The bush. It's about 4 feet round. Maybe 2 or 3 feet high. The sad roots. Nearly nothing there. It has three main trunks. Would it be best to decide on one or two and cut the others? That way it has less top growth to support? Or is that too much stress? Please help lol.

the problem with evergreens... conifers.. is there can be damage... and the darn evergreen.. stays green ... struggling.. until the dry winter ... eventually turns them brown... then we are left.. wondering when the actual problem occurred ... i still suspect injury from wholesaler.. seller.. however it got home. at planting.. etc ... trying real hard to be optimistic here ... btw ... with tip leaf problems... its rarely a whole branch like this ... its usually only the tips.. 6 to ten inches ... i dont treat my plants.. they are free range.. i will leave that discussion to others ... if there is a warranty issue.. talk with your seller ... ken

where are you???? i ruled out asia.. since its not in new england ... but NE is rather large diverse area ... big city name .... welcome to the forums ... first off.. just because you are cold... it matters not to the plants ... as gal noted.. they are well suited to your area ... also keep in mind.. you bought late season bargain plants from bigbox .... they may.. OR MAY NOT .... have trouble next year.. and odds are.. it will have nothing with what you just did ... so just stop having a heart attack about it all ... i suggest that you plant the rest... imo... they would have better odds in mother eaarth.. than in your breezeway ... cold hard winter winds are one of the worst problems ... and buried under snow.. migtht be the best you can do ... if you watered them in PROPERLY at planting.. a good deep soaking .... i simply dont know why they would need anymore water before next may or june ... there simply isnt any heat.. to make soil moisture evaporate.. so all more water will do.. is potentially drown them ... try not to love them to death ... and no fert this late in fall ... just get the job done.. give yourself a high five on the bargain ... and go relax... ken ps: just shove the little ones in anywhere.. you can permanently plant them in early spring .. no need for perfection .... right now ... a dead veg patch would be brilliant ...

read section 12 : https://sites.google.com/site/tnarboretum/Home/planting-a-tree-or-shrub i hope your watering is more than the few stains i see in the mulch ... dead is dead.. and you were right.. its dead.. snip out dead... its dead... why leave dead parts .. they are dead ... note key word... lol .. looks like what we would call mechanical damage ... somewhere between grower and your house.. it was damages by man or machine ... ken