Try bare-rooting and moving during end of winter rather than transplanting with soil ball. I you have no idea how to transplant trees maybe hire someone who does or get a gardening friend to help.

I know I should have done it when it was dormant but never got around to it. I need to do it soon though because I'm remodeling my butterfly garden which I stupidly planted around the tree.

Really can't do it at this time of the year, it is or will soon be just leafing out.

It can be done this time of year, but each day you wait the more you lessen the chances of the tree's survival. Your best bet is to have someone come in with a tree spade and get as much of the rootball as possible. Make sure and scrath (or roughen) the sides of the planting hole of it is done by spade, so that the roots can spread into the new soil.

Then you will have to baby it along...lots and lots and lots of water, and a dose of root stimulator would help. If it is windy in your area you might consider temporarily staking it to keep the wind from blowing it over.

Then it's a wing and a prayer. The chances are not good.

Don't plan on getting any fruit this year.

Well, it's a flowering pear, not the edible type. I think I'm going to leave it and move the new butterfly garden over to the left... Or right... If the placing is looks okay and there's room. Redoing it where it is now would have been perfect... minus that tree.

I'll have to baby along my perennials, including my milkweeds. I just ordered some Superthrive so I think it's manageable. I also have rose of sharons in the middle of my butterfly garden. I guess it makes more sense to move the garden and leave the trees after all.