I'd start over with a new plant. Even if you could revive it, it would take a very long time for it to look presentable.

Agree....that poor little guy is toast! It is beyond the point where it could be revived.

its a conifer.. and a tree ... and when we deal with them.. we need to think about tree time ... and in tree time.. time is counted in years and decades ...

imo.. nothing happens in weeks ... that is one reason they are called evergreen .. i swear i have had dead conifers that stay green looking for months .. after the plant is dead ...

imo .. it was dead ... or near dead .... when you bought it ...

talk to your seller ... he should give you another one ....

if he does .... talk to us.. before you repot it ... ken

With a small conifer growing in a container, things can most certainly happen in weeks....often in just days!! "Tree time" will apply to those established in the landscape, not to a small plant growing in a container. Container gardening is tricky.....I seriously doubt the tree was dead or dying when purchased.

@Ken: Honestly, I just got into gardening recently and am still learning, so I was not so aware of how green evergreens should look like, and it looked pretty decent when I bought it - not this faded out. I don't mind the waiting time if there's any advice to revive it.

@Gardengal48: It was far from the usual evergreen, rich color. It was a pretty decent light green shade and that's why at first I hadn't noticed it turning to yellow as I thought it was light all around.

Eastern red cedars - Juniperus virginiana - often have a bluish-grayish cast to the foliage or a paler green color; not so often a rich, deep green like various other conifer species. So it is somewhat less obvious when they start to decline.

And you can wait if you like........but you are going to be waiting a long time :-) This plant is not going to recover.

@Gardengal48: Thank you for the tips and advice. I think it's best to just start over. :)

To my eye, one of the issues may have been container size. It is more difficult to manage water in a smaller, root-filled container. In future, before watering, stick your finger down several inches into the soil. For most plants you don’t want bone dry and you don’t want soggy; the goal would be almost dry before watering again. Once a container’s soil totally dries out, often the water will just run off around the side of the root ball, and that may have happened here. If it gets to that point on your next plant, submerge the whole pot in a large bucket of water until it stops bubbling, and then take it out and let it drain.

Plants purchased with existing water mold infestations - a common occurrence anywhere plants are being watered heavily, as is usual both at container plant production facilities and in retail yards presenting plants growing in containers - can often be on the way out when bought by end consumers.

@NHBabs & @Embothrium: Thank you both so much for the information, I'll keep it in mind in the future and for the other plants I have.