Maybe post on the Trees or Landscape Design forum.

Best luck!

I always had my best luck transplanting trees in the fall vs spring. The weather is cooling off instead of heating up and the trees require much less watering.

Keep the maple where it is for now, but when you are going to move it, transplant in the spring or fall.

I would wait until the old tree is out and the soil has settled for about a year at a minimum. Whatever was effecting the tree may still be in the soil.

Best of luck!

What kind of maple is it? If its a Norway or Silver maple, for example, it will literally suck the life out of the surrounding plantings as it ages.

tj

You will have to feed and water a flowerbed around a tree, a lot. The tree will suck the food and water from the ground making it hard for anything to grow underneath it, but it can be done. You will have to be vigilant in the feeding and watering. Or you can raise the bed up off the ground. Just don't put in a barrier that will block the water from reaching the tree.

Definitely don't expect the same things to grow under a maple as a birch. Could you plant another birch instead? Varigated hostas look beautiful around birches that have some white in them. Maples suck all the moisture out of the ground, including sugar maples. They also make denser shade than the birch has. will that suit your nearby garden areas? They are beautiful trees, but in my opinion very overplanted and overrated.