Poke around in the original soil mass and visually inspect current moisture content. Also a mulch should be applied to shade the soil around the tree.

from a distance.. the soil looks bone dry ... put a hose on a trickle.. and water it for a few hours.. moving the hose every half hour or so .. we want water 2 to 3 feet out.. from the hole you dug.. and the hole you planted it in .... the lawn does not look in drought.. but you cant water a new transplant with lawn irrigation.. if any .... see link below on watering ...

do you have that horrible OH clay.. or will the hole you dug drain properly????

it incredibly stressed ... due to transport.. planting.. and lack of water.. its not hungry.. no fert until spring.. if ever ..

its a deciduous tree .. within a month.. all the leaves will fall off.. the stress is making that happen a bit early ...

look to the growth ends.. rather than the interior ... its sacrificing so of those leaves to maintain the outer younger leaves ...

look close.. and see if you can see next years buds.. as long as those stay green and hard.. you should be all set for next spring ...

in the midwest.. you should never plant anything in august .. hopefully the cool wave will hold .. the key is cool/cold nights ... for a recovery period after a hot day .;....

see link for a good primer .. you should get some good clues to watering.. etc ... and in case you plant a tree again ... other things you might do differently ....

ken

that stalker in the second pic look stunned by the tree ... lol ...

https://sites.google.com/site/tnarboretum/Home/planting-a-tree-or-shrub

btw ... bargains are to be had in late summer ... but that doesnt mean it planting time.. you could have just put the pot in bright shade.. and help it for a couple weeks to avoid some or this

ken

Thanks for the advice. I put a Tree Gator on it so hopefully that will help. We’ve had some rain so I neglected watering as much as I should have. I was going to wait and plant it later in the season but the nursery guy told me to plant it now. 🙄 In fairness it has been only high of 80ish and low 60’s at night. Hope it makes it.

Is this what you mean by “next year’s buds?”