Don't water them every day, they'll drown. I would cut them back (a lot, like in half) and just keep an eye on them and the soil they're in. They are probably in more danger from using different soil to back fill the planting holes than from drying out, but they are tough and will probably survive.

why would using a soil made for trees and shrubs harm them?

It's not the kind of soil, it's that the soil in the planting hole is different than the soil surrounding the planting hole, which can make drainage a problem - if the soil around the planting hole drains more slowly than what's in the hole itself, the plant can end up sitting in soggy soil for much longer than is good for it.

thanks for the reply lisanti07028. i am very new to landscaping and gardening and thought i was doing a good thing by using soil made for shrubs, i will know better next time.

hopefully since they are on a slope it should help with draining.

assuming it doesn't rain, how often (and how long of a duration) should they be drip watered in your opinion?

insert finger.. or use a small trowel.. and dig 3 to 6 inch holes...AND FIND ABOUT MOISTURE AT DEPTH ...

no one.. and i mean.. no one.. BUT YOU.. can define your soil... and how it holds/drains water ...

most shrubs like a good deep drink.. and then near drying before another deep drink ... plus some good mulch ....

and that can be anywhere from a week to a month depending on your soil ... teh weather.. heat wave.. etc ....

what she said about amending the planting hole.. but that is water under the bridge at this point ....

but the thing you missed... is that this ... with PROPER TIMING.. should have been done when the plant was leafless ... to reduce or avoid severe shock ....

do NOT be surprised if it losses all its leaves ... but as noted.. with PROPER WATERING.. it should recover ....

i am.. as my name suggests down in the real SE MI ... in adrian .. GO WINGS !!!

ken

thanks ken, i will try to monitor moisture like you suggested.

i know i should have got them transplanted sooner, but with a 1 year old, 3 year old, wife that works afternoons and working the weekends i just haven't had the time to do it until last saturday. if they lose their leaves that's fine, i knew there would be loss due to the transplant.

i am pretty close to you, i live in monroe. GO WINGS!!

This post was edited by detroit_fan on Wed, May 29, 13 at 18:32

edit- double post

This post was edited by detroit_fan on Wed, May 29, 13 at 18:33