Baby tree not doing good two days after planting

[arganzua]

I got a Kousa Dogwood online (5 gal bucket) that was doing great for two weeks in the pot.
A landscaper came to plant it in my backyard and today only two days later the tree is quickly going down. Looks limp, tip pointing down, leaves are turning brown and it looks just miserable compared to two days ago. neither the seller nor the landscaper are replying quickly enough so I would appreciate any ideas of what to try considering two weeks on the bucket was great but two days on the land is not working. I watered lightly on the first day (landscaper didn't). Last night it rained. This is in Philadelphia area. Tree is geting shade in the am but sunlight the rest of the day. Tree was planted on the spot a dead tree was removed last year. Pics were taken this morning and now early afternoon tree seems to be in even worse shape.
Suggestions please!

 

[grizz55chev]

I got a Kousa Dogwood online (5 gal bucket) that was doing great for two weeks in the pot.
A landscaper came to plant it in my backyard and today only two days later the tree is quickly going down. Looks limp, tip pointing down, leaves are turning brown and it looks just miserable compared to two days ago. neither the seller nor the landscaper are replying quickly enough so I would appreciate any ideas of what to try considering two weeks on the bucket was great but two days on the land is not working. I watered lightly on the first day (landscaper didn't). Last night it rained. This is in Philadelphia area. Tree is geting shade in the am but sunlight the rest of the day. Tree was planted on the spot a dead tree was removed last year. Pics were taken this morning and now early afternoon tree seems to be in even worse shape.
Suggestions please!

Give it a few days, bet it's in shock.

 

[Mad Professor]

Water it down heavy. You can also cut some small scrub trees and brush it in for a week or so to give it shade until it recovers.

 

[arganzua]

I'll try to answer as much as I can...
- The landscaper didn't want to do it... he said he had no crew, then they said if I found a tree they'll plant it. My impression from the guys they sent is that they were new and they only knew the green side of the tree goes up. Company has tree service and landscaping... the tree service were awesome on previous work but landscaping was not impressive, this was my 1st landscape service from them, but tree service from them removed the old tree last year and did some other work on other trees to good results in my layman's view.
- I watered lightly because in my mind the dirt in the pot had been watered the previous day and the roots were moist, so I didn't want to do too much, just to get the soil on the land also wet. It also rained last night and ground is wet today except the surface. I don't know about "get the air out" so not me, and I doubt landscaper guys did it.
- I don't know what caused the previous tree to die... it was completely dry and brittle. It was not a dogwood, but I don't know what it was... it was a common tree in my area with helicopter seeds... I have more of those and I could post pic of the that if it helps identifying it.
- I do have weeds in the backyard, pic doesn't show. Last fall I had more weeds and I (myself) sprayed some Tenacity herbicide, and after three weeks a different landscaper came to aereate and overseed. Then they put some fertilizer (2 sessions 21 days appart), again all of that last fall. No chems this year.
- Nothing was used to kill the grass in the area... grass never gew back after previous tree was removed, and I shoveled the spot level to remove the wood chips from the ground stomp as a preparation for the dogwood. I did see a few (4-5) grubs when leveling but I didn't think much of it.
- At the base is branches... I think it was planted a bit deep.

Thanks

 

[farmer steve]

I'm thinking transplant shock. Keep the soil moist but not saturated. It may take up to a week or so to perk up. Your tree with helicopter seeds was more than likely a silver maple. Common here in PA. Good luck with it.

 

[arganzua]

This is the explanation from the nursery... "We use the numbered system for our containers as opposed to the gallon sizes because the term 'gallon' causes some confusion sometimes. Nursery gallons are not the same as the volumetric gallon we all know."
So this one was a #5 pot meaning a 5 gallon nursery pot.
The tree is about 5ft.

 

[Del_]

Are these surface roots?
They look to be adventitious roots.

Adventitious roots would indicate that the tree had been planted too deeply in it's container.

Trees grown in containers at nurseries are often place closely together. This reduces the amount of light that each tree gets. Watering is often done almost every day. The result can be lush growth that when planted in an open yard with a lot of sun can result in foliage damage. 50% shade cloth for the first few weeks or month can aid in acclimation to the trees new environment.

 

[arganzua]

Yep, only two days, and it was looking great before planting. I took this pic just one ot two days before planting.
(I know some of you are going to point out the issue with the cherry clusters in the background but that will be another post)
I wish I knew what is it that you can't tell me... chainsaw?
Of course after only two days I'm hoping there is a cure and my concern is if I do nothing it will die.

 

[arganzua]

Are these surface roots?
They look to be adventitious roots.

Adventitious roots would indicate that the tree had been planted too deeply in it's container.

Trees grown in containers at nurseries are often place closely together. This reduces the amount of light that each tree gets. Watering is often done almost every day. The result can be lush growth that when planted in an open yard with a lot of sun can result in foliage damage. 50% shade cloth for the first few weeks or month can aid in acclimation to the trees new environment.

I don't know if they are roots or low branches, I'll take a look at it tomorrow.

 

[arganzua]

Lol no, not a chainsaw, or a sawsall.
I would want to see the root ball and there's only one way to do that.
Then I would make sure it was planted and watered correctly.

Did it have roots growing out the bottom of the container?

I couldn't zoom in enough to get a clear look at the base of the tree.

With my luck, unfortunately when landscaper came to plant it I was on a business call so I never saw it. Then they were done in short time.
Would it suffice to see the root ball if I remove soil from one side without digging out the whole thing?
There were no roots out of the bottom of the container.

 

[goonybird]

Vitamin B... Sometimes refered to as "Start". Helps prevent shock and promotes rooting. Once worked for a nursery and we used used Liquinox Start for every large planting , like trees. They all survived and grew up happy. Kept them from shocking and gave them an edge until they rooted. Also some nutriant plugs until they got fully rooted.

 

[arganzua]

Vitamin B... Sometimes refered to as "Start". Helps prevent shock and promotes rooting. Once worked for a nursery and we used used Liquinox Start for every large planting , like trees. They all survived and grew up happy. Kept them from shocking and gave them an edge until they rooted. Also some nutriant plugs until they got fully rooted.

That reminds me, I gave the landscaper a bag (2oz granules) of Probiotic Root Stimulant I received from the nursery that I trust they used at the bottom of the hole before planting.

 

[farmer steve]

This is the explanation from the nursery... "We use the numbered system for our containers as opposed to the gallon sizes because the term 'gallon' causes some confusion sometimes. Nursery gallons are not the same as the volumetric gallon we all know."
So this one was a #5 pot meaning a 5 gallon nursery pot.
The tree is about 5ft.

I forget when the law was changed about container sizes here in PA. It originally had to do with hanging basket sizes.

 

[dboyd351]

"nursery gallons are not the same as ...."

please explain

 

[arganzua]

"nursery gallons are not the same as ...."

please explain

I don't have an explanation. I was quoting the statement from the nursery.

 

[arganzua]

So based on the comments so far here is what I'm getting.
Tree has planted deep => I'm still unclear if I need to dig it out or if it will eventually adjust.
Tree needs more water => I give it a good one and make sure roots are wet. This will help it perk up.
Tree is getting too much sunlight => I have a deck umbrella I could use to give it some shade until it adjusts. This will help further leaves damage.
Tree has transplant shock => It will recover. Maybe add some 'Start' but considering something was already added I'll hold on this.
(my layman's opinion) Tree was tethered low => Raising the point of contact with the tree a bit will help it get less banged up on windy days.

Please let me know if there are other suggestions or if I missed anything.

 

[dboyd351]

I don't have an explanation. I was quoting the statement from the nursery.

I guess I was asking farmer steve
sounds like BS but asking to see if there was a reasonable explanation
unless the ground is contaminated any landscaper who can't plant healthy tree and have it stay healthy for 2 days needs another line of work
nobody knowledgeable plants a tree without giving it a through watering

 

[dboyd351]

BTW some herbicides (roundup/glyphosphate) are non-selective and kill everything while others (2-4D) kill broadleaf plants, but not grasses -
so just because something did not kill grass doesn't mean it will not kill a small tree

 

[arganzua]

BTW some herbicides (roundup/glyphosphate) are non-selective and kill everything while others (2-4D) kill broadleaf plants, but not grasses -
so just because something did not kill grass doesn't mean it will not kill a small tree

Good point. I don't think this is my case now... When I sprayed Tenacity last year (mixed with surfactant and coloring), this was not all over the lawn, only on spots with weeds. The place where the tree is at was bare because an old tree was removed, so no Tenacity there.

 

[arganzua]

I will

That sounds about right to me.
I would suggest carefully removing some of the soil around the trunk until you see some roots, then post a photo of that here so we can see what it looks like.
Don't go down too far, just until you can see how the top roots are growing.

I'll do that later today.