Oh wow!!! That's an amazing gift! What you need to do for now is remove the plastic (of course!) and do put in the eastern exposure. Water when the top inch of soil is dry and don't spray it otherwise. Only water from above - slowly so all the soil gets some and isn't disturbed otherwise. Don't fertilize for 6 wks, then use a balanced house plant type. Now, try to find a bonsai (not bonZai) club nearby because they're great places to learn. Next go to www.bonsai4me.com and read up on things there, plus join forums at www.bonsaisite.com and www.bonsaitalk.com - good places with lots of info. Don't think of your tree as a house plant, or treat it like porcelain - it's a strong tree. If a few leaves drop or yellow, don't fuss, it's just relocating pains. If a lot yellow, back off on water, but if they're crispy, look for spider mites (unlikely outdoors) or overly intense sun (especially in the first few wks of acclimatization). Once things are going well, and spring brings new leaves, you'll want to learn about pruning, root pruning and shaping, but those can wait for now. Good luck with your beautiful baby!

hey ken...when u say no luk with golden spreader as in death?? i looooove this plant and its rich yellow...mine isnt as great as ones ive seen before but im wondering what kind of bad luk and any advice on improving my luck??any good detailed description about your experience with this plant would b helpful as in where was it planted, how, etc etc...thanks ====>>>> i dont know why.. but two failed.. small babes ... and i know other peeps have failed .. and a few succeeded ... but let me tell you one thing about gardening.. no matter what the plant.. the most cherished is usually the one that fails ... lol i think one died on spring transplant followed quickly by extreme summer heat.. and full sun and one failed on fall planting over the winter ... i think it has something to do with the sickly yellow tissue, as compared to green ... reducing the vigor of the plant.. reducing root growth ... and the plants ability to move water on transplant ... and searing full blistering summer sun complicating the root issue ... most likely.. proper siting with reduced late afternoon sun.. would be beneficial.. but too much shade and you wont get the good yellow color ... but since i failed twice.. i can not do more than speculate.. perhaps if you start a new post specifically about this plant.. you will get answers .. instead of burying them in this post ... i once had live BB conifers in the house for xmas .... and did exactly as your guy suggested....took them out ... healed int he pots ... and planted AS SOON AS THE SOIL THAWED in spring .... 3 things are imperative: A -- soil drainage ... if you are in clay ... then they need to be above ground.. to insure that the pots do NOT freeze into an ice cube.. roots need air as much as water ... B -- a black pot/root ball can NEVER be heated in the winter sun.. or the roots may come in and out of dormancy leading to root rot and death ... and the old joke 3 -- some protection from blistering winter wind ... i would group them all and put some burlap around the group to reduce direct winter sun and wind .. if you do all that.. and they remain fully dormant, as you did not answer if they are still outside ... you should have no problems in general .. but for that problem chucker if you had them in the heated house.. you MAY need to harden them off before throwing them into the yard .... you might have a hard time finding mulch to cover the black pots this time of year.. good luck with that ... ken ps: tell us about your property.. since you are dreaming about some plants that can get rather large ... perhaps another post ... have no fear about lots of posts.. its rather dead here at GW in winter .. and volume is not a bad thing .. IMHO ...

Crazy is all relative. I know this because all my relatives are crazy. Good thing they have me around to point this out, or they would never know. I am a pharmacist. I've had a stethoscope for years for checking patients blood pressure. This is the first season I've used it when doing nest box checks (I have one for patients and one for birds). I've only gotten confused once when I told a lady her systolic pressure was fine, and that I could hear a healthy chirping in her diastolic pressure and was sure she would fledge within a couple of days. She thanked me and hurried out the door. It gives me a good feeling when I know I've helped people like that.

Just to answer some of the questions in previous posts; SD unfortunately did not do well in school in the second half of her Junior year in the new FL HS, mainly C's and D's. When the girlfriend did come down to visit during the VA schools spring break (not the break period for FL schools) SD skipped school for 3 days to hang with her girlfriend. Biofather was not happy and told my mother-in-law during a phone call that the girlfriend was a bad influence and was no longer allowed to visit. This was the same girlfrined that was planned to live in the home in FL. SD was allowed to lay around all summer, no job, no vacation, no activites. SD has not been "allowed" to get her learners permit or drivers license, thus no BMW car and no driving (as of 10/1). In the fall (senior year) SD has enrolled in just a few classes for 1/2 day opting for a work-study program where she is to work 1/2 day for real world work experience. Her job is working directly for her biofather as his personal secretary at the pizza shop he manages. Biofather is not a college graduate and he does not "see the need for his daughter to go to college." From phone call with mother-in-law. To clarify the SD room issue, when I returned from a 2 week business trip I found that my wife had cleaned up SD's room and taken apart the bed to thoroughly clean the room (room was a mess,smelled, and SD had responsibility and freedom with her room). Next day SD shows up completely unexpected for a 3 day visit with instructions to "pack" from biofather. Boyfriend picked her up at the airport and we had no idea she was coming. I immediately told my wife that the room was a negative signal and she did not agree with me at the time. Nothing premeditated or planned/intended here, just very unfortunate timing and my wife did intend to keep this as SD's room. I could see that SD was unhappy even though she was rarely home those days, opting to spend all 3 days of her visit time with her boyfriend. SD did no packing at all during her visit. After my post on this forumn and discussions with my wife, she realized the possible negative signal inadvertently sent and SD's room was certainly re-assembled with an apology message sent. SD's room is complete and is there for her. Wish my wife (and I) were perfect people! Bad luck on this one. My wife and I have decided to return to our original plan from some time ago; to select a very special Tiffany's gift and either give it to my SD at our celebration dinner in FL, or mail it to her promptly if necessary. SD is in BD's care and we are moving on. Thank you all for your best wishes and the sincere advice. I really appreciate it.