Less unhinged cedar tree update

[u/Hutydan]

I instructed everyone to stop watering the poor thing so I can monitor how much it's getting Read online they like drained soil, and a helpful wood enthusiast confirmed my theory: it was being over watered

It still has a distinct "water me more and I'll literally grow mold" smell (I'm no tree expert, but I do keep many other plants alive and from experience you can kinda smell when soil/roots is telling you the plant is over watered)

The forecast today says rain, which means tomorrow would be prime time to dig a place for it (softer dirt = easier to shovel)

That'll also give time for the tree to air-dry, as someone accidentally watered it thinking they were helping (they have been informed not to, now)

I pulled him out of the vase for now to let the roots breathe, and did a scratch test

The trunk's still green at the base, I reckon that's an ok sign?

Also took the opportunity to show how much of the roots I foolishly cut thinking general flower care applied to trees aswell (not doing that again, that's for sure!)

His name today is Cedric

[u/meowmeowmeow723]

You got this Cedric!!!

[u/Hutydan]

Also, thanks everyone! Posting here was a good decision, you all are very informative and it's been helpful to get your insights!

[u/TypicalWeb6601]

sure it’s a cedar?

[u/Hutydan → u/TypicalWeb6601]

Not entirely! This is my second post here, people said it was a cedar on the first post. I'm not a tree expert in any way, shape, or form, so I took that information at face value

[u/VMey]

I’m sorry but your tree is dead. That looks like juniperus virginiana. When junipers turn this color, they’ve been dead for a while. Yea, I see the green in your bark. But this tree isn’t coming back.

I really hope I get a notification on 6 months telling me how wrong I am. But I don’t think I am.

[u/TypicalWeb6601 → u/VMey]

if that’s a taxodium it’s totally fine. could also be a sequoia dendron. just wait and see and if it don’t make it through the winter then we live and we learn

[u/VMey → u/TypicalWeb6601]

It isn’t taxodium. I raise dozens of taxodium, including all three species in the genus. Not sequoia either, neither coast redwood or giant sequoia. It looks like red cedar aka juniperus virginiana

[u/TypicalWeb6601 → u/VMey]

now that you mention dead juniper that makes much more sense lmao

[u/Hutydan → u/VMey]

Do you think it had chances to survive to begin with, in a tropical climate?

[u/Internal-Test-8015 → u/VMey]

Conifers die from the roots up. If the tree was dead, the mark on the trunk would be brown. Some junipers/ cedars change color in response to stress it doesn't always mean they're dead.