IMO, the siting for those is terrible!! These are woodland understory shrubs in nature so a coolish, partial shade location is preferred. As long as the other area drains well, I'd move them to the shadier area, although no guarantee how well they will respond and improve their looks. And make sure you prepare a proper planting bed for them, not just a hole dug in the lawn. Turf grasses are very competitive plants and will rob young, newly planted shrubs and trees of necessary moisture and nutrients.

Yes, I definitely did not think this one through.

I'm pretty sure that the combination of too much sun and being planted directly into the Bermuda is the cause. I actually thought that the grass would protect the roots from so much heat. Whoops.

I'll try the new location, but I'm fairly convinced that these just don't have a good home anywhere on my lot. I'll give it a try though!