It doesn't look that bad at all, just a little worse for wear from shipping. I would pot it up to a larger size (not too much larger -- just enough to give the roots more room to spread out) and keep it shaded from the hot afternoon and evening sun for a while until it firmly gets its bearings; morning and early afternoon sun would be good after an initial few days in total shade. Keep moist but don't overwater. Late summer is optimal transplanting time but if you have to plant sooner than that same advice as above -- shade cloth will be your friend here.

Thanks for the encouragement porkchop! It does look a bit better this morning (when the photos were taken)

It's still pretty hot here (although not as bad as the last few days) so I think I will wait until at least this evening to repot it. I don't want to stress it more than it is.

This is going to be planted on the edge of my patch of woods so it will be dappled shade for most of the day. If the weather (and life!) cooperates I will try to get it planted in the next week. If not I will wait till fall. That is, if it survives lol!

:)

Dee

From your photo, it does look like the leader has been cut off. I would call the nursery that sent it and tell them you are returning it and want a refund. Most nurseries will not send trees and often no plants in the heat. Where did you order it?

I agree. The nursery can get a

weather forecast and would have known about the heatwave. i have seen notices that a nursery had to stop shipping bc heat. Im baffled theyd cut off the leader of a tree that size.

Yes, after gardening for 30+ years, I realize summer is not the time to order mail-order plants. But technically it was the end of May, first week of June, still spring, and has been cool - temps in the low 70's, with temps BACK in the 70's this coming week. My bad for I guess not checking the forecast more carefully.

Dee

Okay so I just sent off an email to the nursery to ask for a replacement. We'll see, I guess.

There WAS a loose branch in the box when I opened it. From the shape it looked like a side branch to me, but I tried to see if the end of it matched the top of the tree. It really didn't, so I do think it was a side branch and think I found where it was. If it WAS the leader, then they bent that poor thing way more than it should have been, to fit in the box.

See the branch on the ground? It was dead and shriveled so it's smaller than it would be when alive. Now I'm wondering if that pronounced curve in the very end of it is because it WAS bent...?

Here is the box the tree was shipped in

If that was the leader it really was, IMO, bent too far. The tree was nicely packed so I would be surprised if they tried to squeeze that in! They needed to use a bigger box if that was the leader.

We'll see what they say...

:)

Dee

I have had too many bad experiences buying trees and shrubs with mailed delivery. Too many disappointments with size and condition. If I cant find it near me I dont need it.

I sure hope you are satisfied with the return and outcome.

Sherry

sherrygirl the problem is there just aren't many local nurseries left to find things nearby. I have a very reputable nursery about an hour away but most of their trees and even shrubs are quite large and expensive.

I visited another local nursery quite close to me - it took over when Twombley's, which was a fairly well-known nursery who shipped to other parts of the country, closed their business. I was excited to visit because along the road they have some lovely plantings, but when I got there, despite their nine acres of plants, they really didn't have much variety at all. My guess is they do mostly wholesale, and the local work they do is either corporate landscaping or landscaping for homeowners who want a nice foundation planting and are happy with the usual suspects, lol.

In general I have had very good luck and success with mail-order. Yes, everything is so small, especially the perennials and many shrubs, but I have gotten a few good-sized (4-5 feet tall) healthy trees via mail-order too.

This tree was just a double whammy - sudden and unusual heat-wave just when they shipped, and the leader issue.

Actually, while waiting for a response, I was examining a branch that I found in the box a bit further. Originally I thought it was a side branch, but the pronounced curve leads me to wonder if it was the leader, and they bent it almost in half to fit in the box, and then it broke off during shipping. You can see the branch on the ground in front of the tree in a photo above.

Either way, they responded, said it was usual nursery practice to remove the leader, not to worry because another leader would grow, and no replacement.

Not thrilled with the response but I guess that's that.

:)

Dee

Either way, they responded, said it was usual nursery practice to remove the leader...

Nope nope nope. If you used a credit card (always best practice), you can contact them and tell them you need a refund due to damage to the tree because of lousy packing. Also mention the cut leader. That may be their practice, but I have never heard of a nursery doing that.

cyn427, the company's response to my email was a quite detailed answer (and I appreciate that, at the very least!). They said this was a standard and intentional nursery practice, that growers prune the main leaders in the field to manage growth specifically for shipping purposes. They said a secondary leader will taker over as the new leader, and the tree is structurally healthy and sound and behaving as it should, and so I don't need a replacement.

My first thought was that this was a bunch of baloney but I did some internet searching and it does seem that nurseries do this. Whether it's good or not is another issue - I went down quite an interesting rabbit hole on some arborists forums discussing this practice and it's pros and cons.

This tree is meant to go in a patch of woods on my property. I have many large oaks, but they are separated by big distances so there is a lot of open space underneath. I am putting this at the edge of one of these open spaces, just to have some color in the spring and also a bit more privacy. If this were to be a specimen planting I might be more concerned but I think this will be okay. However, lesson learned for any future purchases!

:)

Dee

Thanks for the update as I did not realize that it was a common practice to cut the leader on mail order trees.

Dogwoods are a great idea as understory trees for your oaks and some are native in our area. Consider adding a couple variegated ones too. I like the ones added in my mix.

I planted redbuds too (both as understory and specimen) but find that they are not long-lived for me even if I choose one with a strong leader.

DesignFan that natural rock garden is lovely. As someone who deals with solid ledge in a good portion of my yard (of course in the only sunny part lol) I have to say I still love when rock is incorporated into a garden, and yours looks wonderful. Your man-made stonework is lovely too.

Great minds must think alike - in addition to the dogwood I just purchased, I planted a redbud Oklahoma two years ago, and also have a pagoda dogwood living in a pot waiting for a permanent home in a soon-(hopefully)-to-be-expanded shade garden.

:)

Dee

Thank you! I embrace rocks and ledge since my property has an abundance of both.

Nice choice on the pagoda dogwood as it is such a striking tree. I was sad to lose mine a couple years ago during a storm.

Good luck with your planting!

Thanks, Design Fan! I have been kind of kicking myself the last few years, and moreso since last week.

I used to have a small garden maintenance business, and one of my customers was in my neighborhood, and she asked me to design some beds for her. I hesitated as I have no design credentials or true experience, but she insisted I try since she knew nothing about gardening.

She had it all - a swamp (where I once stepped out of my boot which was sucked into the mud), lots of shade, a creek, and lots of dry sun. It was a wonderful yard to try things and see what I could do - and I thank her to this day for letting me have absolute free reign and learning so much.

Anyway, I put a pagoda dogwood in that did beautifully. I few years after planting this, she put her house on the market. When it sold, she told me to take anything I wanted out of the garden. I declined, saying I didn't know if this was fair - after all the new owners had seen the gardens before they bought the house,and technically the gardens belonged to them. She insisted they would never know what was missing, but all I took was one small hosta. I REALLY wanted to take that dogwood, but didn't.

My little dogwood is living in it's pot, growing slowly of course, and I'm not sure I'm liking the shape it's growing into. I know I can try to shape it by pruning, but that scares me lol. I keep thinking of that dogwood in her yard.

Last week I made the mistake of driving by her house. Oh....my....God... I should have taken every single plant out of every single bed just to save their lives. EVERTYHING is completely overgrown with invasive vine and weeds, nothing in any of the beds is cared for, there are huge monster trucks all over the yard, and storage pods, etc., and some of her japanese maples have been cut down. What a mess, and how sad that such a lovely yard looks so awful now, not to mention that all my hard work and all her money, are now just squandered. I can only hope that the current occupants don't stay long and the new ones can uncover - and REcover - some of her lovely gardens.

Sorry for the ramble lol, but this is now what I think of every time I look at my little pagoda dogwood!

:)

Dee

Diggerdee, have you called any other nurseries or, even better, an arborist to ask them the same question?

cyn427, honesty, I didn't even think to do that. As I said, this particular tree is for the understory, not a specimen, and only cost me about 60 bucks. I am just going to plant it and see how it does. I might try to train one branch up; haven't decided yet.

However, for future purchases, I am most definitely going to check with whatever nursery I am considering ordering from whether or not they do this. Now I know so I will definitely be checking!

:)

Dee