how big are they ...

ken

The privets are about 6' tall by about 2-3' wide. The Redbud is about 12 feet tall with a 2" diameter trunk.

I red that you should get 12" of root ball for every 1" of diameter trunk as a general rule for trees.

I just talked to the landscaper, and of course they aren't accepted much responsibility. She stated that "maybe they cut the root ball 2-3" too much, but that wouldn't have mattered that much."

She also advised we don't put anything on it except water for the first several weeks. Maybe some organic matter but nothing else. We have our own urban composter, but it's not fully composted all through out.

Here is a picture of them digging up the Redbud . Hopefully you can get a glimpse of the size of the rootball from where the shovel is!
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Here are 3 privets and 3 altheas all in a wheelbarrow! You can get an idea of the size of my 2 transplanted privets by seeing how many plants are all inside that wheelbarrow.

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What a mess, those guys need to take a long walk on a short pier. I would never ever use them again! They cut the roots with the shovel. Thats not digging out its cutting them out. Try and get them in the ground ASAP. Since they cut big roots you may have to support them for wind. No fert just water deep, maybe some root hormone or root stimulater and pray.

I hope you haven't paid them yet! Honestly, I see more folks out in this world calling themselves "landscapers" who haven't a clue how to go about their business! I've dug bigger rootballs myself for significantly smaller plants. Since they did not do the job properly, I see no reason why they should get paid full price (and fwiw, the landscapers I work with guarantee their work - if it dies, THEY replace it at their expense. Or they will tell me if they feel it too risky to move and nullify their guarantee).

All you can do now is water them well and keep your fingers crossed. And find a better landscaper for any future projects.

I hope you haven't paid them yet! Honestly, I see more folks out in this world calling themselves "landscapers" who haven't a clue how to go about their business! I've dug bigger rootballs myself for significantly smaller plants. Since they did not do the job properly, I see no reason why they should get paid full price (and fwiw, the landscapers I work with guarantee their work - if it dies, THEY replace it at their expense. Or they will tell me if they feel it too risky to move and nullify their guarantee).

All you can do now is water them well and keep your fingers crossed. And find a better landscaper for any future projects!

I'd be crying. There is always hope, so just baby them for the summer. Maybe cut the privets back so the truncated roots aren't trying to keep all that growth going.

The semi-good news is that my husband complained to the owner of the landscape company. Within 5 minutes, our landscaper contact called back and said they were ripping up our $500 check! We offered to pay them something for their time, but they agreed it was their fault and I think it mostly stems from wanting to start our pool dig on a positive note. (The landscape company is a related company to the pool builder.)

Why does my husband always have to get involved to get action?? Makes me feel so useless! I covered all the same points and tried to negotiate at the beginning. It was when he went straight to the top that action was given.

Remarkably, the red bud still looks decent 12 hours later. The privets are wilting a bit more. Pool dig starts tomorrow, which will mean no sprinkler system for awhile! I will be hand watering and still hoping for the best!

Thank you to everyone here for weighing in!! Makes me feel rational!

Don't pay those so-called "landscapers", they don't know a thing about transplanting anything.