It's not harmful & It needn't be an oversized scratch at all. Use several unobtrusive spots to check, The cambium is the layer just under the bark.icewind wrote:we are in arizona and its on the east side of the house, so it gets morning sun most of the day but no afternoon heat. the foilage is crispy in some places, flexible in others, it was alot greener before he took it and fixed it. no I haven't scraped it to see if it's still alive, just assumed it still wasI don't want to hurt it anymore, how do it scratch it properly.
If it is alive, It will be a PALE green color, Any other color white, Tan, Brown, Ect indicates you have an ex-tree and if this is so I would not be so quick to place the blame of this on your [absolutely not an] 'expert'.
A juniper can have the foliage remain green for many weeks and even months after it has expired. It is possible it has been dead for a long time and is just starting to show it, Just so you know.
Also: I should have explained the scratching process thanks Joe, But you should be aware that it's also extremely important to point out that this:
...Well, This is very bad news indeed as it indicates that your 'Experts' ...Yes the soil is two different types , the soil close to the tree is what it came in orig. , the other soil is what he used to fill the new pot when he trimmed it.
..er 'Expertise' is lacking. Having potting media with two different drainage/moisture retention properties within the same pot [two different soil mixes] is not effective because if you are watering enough to keep the outer 'well draining' soil wet ... Then you will be drowning the original soil near the roots. If you keep the interior soil fairly dry the outer soil will be a desert.
This surrounding gritty new soil is also why the water 'runs out' as you no doubt have read that it should. However this situation needs to be rectified.
All of the original soil should have been removed and replaced during the repot/rootpruning.
Please read these threads/ links to familiarize yourself with PROPER bonsai soil and repotting.
https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=3422
https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=3530&highlight=soil
Some reading about Bonsai soil for you: https://www.bonsai4me.com/Basics/Basics_Soils.html
In fact read all the articles on this page, Take special note of the ones on watering, Soil, Pruning, & Repotting : https://www.bonsai4me.com/Basics.html
Here is a bit on Junipers: https://www.bonsai4me.com/SpeciesGuide/Juniperus.html
Another page FULL of articles: https://www.evergreengardenworks.com/articles.htm
Hopefully this research will help you out and armed with some knowledge there will be no need for other people to be fooling with your tree, You know. That's usually not such a hot idea anyway
.ynot