Baby Jade Bonsai dying?

[kbeeman1127]

My Baby Jade bonsai has recently been losing all of its leaves and the branches on it are getting dry and cracking. Kind of like shedding skin on the branches but underneath is a dry shriveled stick I guess you could say. I water my plant every 2-4 weeks depending on what the leaves look like. I also have a plant food suitable for the jade plant that I bought at a gardening store. I changed the soil back in September when I got the plant. Can anyone give me an answer as to why all of a sudden my plant is losing its leaves and the branches are shriveling?

[josh1812@live.com]

even for a succulent 2-4 weeks without water is unbearable I am no expert with jades but I think it is under-watering

[manIK]

even for a succulent 2-4 weeks without water is unbearable I am no expert with jades but I think it is under-watering

I agree - 2-4 weeks!? Surely you meant to say 2-4 days? Which could be considered over-watering, depending.

When you say " depending on what the leaves look like." can you shed some light on that? Do you mean to suggest you wait for the leaves to start drooping and shriveling before you water it?

I don't know Jade so I couldn't say anything about what the needs of the species are.

Can you post some pictures? I'm curious about what this horrible shriveling and cracking mass looks like.

[josh1812@live.com]

I think he/she was referring to the drooping of the leaves or the crinkling which is a common misconception of when to water these trees.

[djlen]

I find that too much fluorescent light can also be a huge detriment to the health and well-being of Jades. Since I put mine outside for the Spring and Summer they have improved greatly.
Is yours under fluorescents?

[kbeeman1127]

I have talked to people from different nurseries including the one I got the plant from and they have told me in the winter to water every two-four weeks or when the leaves begin to lose the plumpness. I've also read books and internet sources which say this is fine due to the fact that it is a succulent species. when I first got the plant I over watered it by having watered it every week. I am not able to get the tree out yet because I live in Northern Ohio and the weather has yet to get nicer. Next week it is suppose to be in the upper 70's so as long as it isn't windy I plan on getting the tree outside. I posted a picture when I first got the tree and what it looks like now along with the leaves and the branches that look the worse. Obviously it is in horrible shape and looks pathetic. I don;t know if you can see the cracks in the branches well or not but they are shrivled[img]https://i823.photobucket.com/albums/zz159/kbeeman1127/IMG_3871.jpg[/img]
[img]https://i823.photobucket.com/albums/zz159/kbeeman1127/IMG_3870.jpg[/img]
[img]https://i823.photobucket.com/albums/zz159/kbeeman1127/IMG_3873.jpg[/img]
[img]https://i823.photobucket.com/albums/zz159/kbeeman1127/IMG_3743.jpg[/img]
This is when I first got the plant the first three pictures are of the plant now.[/img]