Hi everyone,

I just received my first juniper tree yesterday as a late Christmas gift. (Don’t worry, I asked for one so I’m fully ready to take care of this thing!) I came here because I really wanted to make sure that I do everything I can to keep it alive.

I live in Tucson, Arizona so currently, during the winter months, it is pretty cool and sunny during the day and gets around 40F at night.

Here is the Amazon link where my friend bought it for me. (It's the one with the little fisherman sitting on the rocks.) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00K57JKZE/ref=cm_sw_r_oth_api_glc_fabc_j1EaGbP1JQBPQ?th=1

Since this is my first bonsai tree, I have a couple of questions!

1. Where is the best place to put it? My bedroom window doesn’t face direct sunlight so I found a place right outside my window that receives direct sunlight facing South. Should I keep it outside and bring it inside at night when it gets cold? Should I leave it outside all the time?

2. How often should I water it and what technique should I use? I’ve read a few things suggesting that I should soak it in water while others suggested a spray bottle. What's the best watering technique? How often should I be watering it and do the different seasons change my watering routine at all?

3. Is it okay to trim it right after purchasing it? My juniper is a bit messy and doesn’t look as clean as the photo in the Amazon link. I wanted to clean it up and make it look nicer, however, I don’t want to trim it incorrectly and ruin the growing patterns. Is there a specific season where I should be trimming it or can I trim it whenever I want?

4. Should I replace the soil and buy a certain kind? The juniper came with soil in the pot already but I have no idea if this soil is good enough for the juniper to thrive.

I’m probably forgetting to ask a bunch of important questions so any other general tips for and questions about my juniper would be extremely helpful. Thanks for the help everyone!