That's too close. 20 feet away is perfect. If you don't have 20 feet to spare, plant it 15 but no closer than that. A 20 foot tall Fat Albert will be 10 feet across and it's gonna grow to forty with the width pretty much doubling. It's either going to be a future removal for you or the next guy if you don't do it right.

If you plant it now, just mulch it and keep the soil damp (not waterlogged) but run the hose for 5 minutes over it a few times a week. You should do this next summer as well but maybe a once a week should be fine.

A real small plant in full sun can die pretty easily but I'm talking about a fresh graft or a one-year conifer. Typically, the third year the full sun conifers can be planted in full sun, from grafted. Don't worry about a 3 foot blue spruce.

Dax

Your other option is to prune the magnolia when the time comes. You should be able to find an attractive silouette somewhere within the branch structure. Another option too is to keep the Star magnolia pruned to a shrub-form / small-tree.

Dax

Thank you so much for responding. I think I will try to first rethink my plan and give it a little more space ... then maybe prune the magnolia a bit if it starts to get overcrowded someday ... I didn't realize a Fat Albert got that big ! Thank you again !

i have about 10 potted conifers.. on the front walk .. full shade but for an hour at sunset .... but very bright ....

in my z5.. i will plant them.. when the nights are reliably in the 50'2 ... last 2 weeks of sept.. thru all of october ...

that way.. high day temps [if any] are offset by cool nights.. less stress all around...

though you can do it now.. why risk it ... its just to hot.. it was 97 here yesterday .... not great planting weather.

ken

Wouldn't there simply be more stress in the pots with summer sun/heat? The ground is temperate.
Call me a contrarian... but common sense suggests they will be happiest right in the ground.

I am in the same boat. Just bought a Blue on sale. I worry about planting it in the same sunny spot that an HD version pooped out on me. I think I might put the pot inside another pot with some insulation (so the airtemp doesnt heat up the roots) and then plant in September. If I water every day the tree will be the same as if it was still at the nusery - better as the pot and roots will be cooler.

Since my thermometer says 102 degrees today ... I am of the mind to wait until it is bit cooler ... my tree will have to wait ... a bit ... I'd rather not faint in the heat.

If I'm not mistaken, the Fat Albert cultivar grows about the same size as the species version. You should allow a lot of space if you plan to plant that tree in your landscape.

Proper spacing might look a bit ridiculous now when the tree is so small, but in 10 or 15 years you will be glad you did it.

Now I am a bit worried ... having had 2 people respond with ultimate height info contrary to what I had thought ... I particularly did not want a blue spruce that grows to full height ... that means 40 - 50 ft. tall and 10 - 20 ft. wide ? (sigh...) My corner has phone/electric wires, not directly overhead but close, over the sidewalk, and if this tree gets that big, it will dominate the whole corner. I don't know if I will have room to walk from the driveway to the backyard. (well, maybe a slight exaggeration, but ...) Also, I am trying to keep all plantings on the corner back 10-15 ft from the road so I won't block the view for traffic. I hope this tree wasn't a mistake ... The lady at the nursery said it grows slowly, at 1" - 2" (inches) per year. Is that accurate ? I feel a bit at a loss now of what to do ... I guess the Monrovia tag on the tree was misleading ... ultimate height of 12-15 ft./width of 10-12 ft. I also saw a "Baby Blue Eyes" Spruce there but this Fat Albert was a better price and the Baby Blue Eyes said the mature height was 40'. Planting doesn't seem as simple as I thought.

You need something like Picea omorika. Just a plain seedling. Beautiful trees.

Electrical wires, all that, no way. 1-2" per year is impossible. All you got to do is look at the growth it put on this year realizing that when it's in the ground and gets growing, also, this is going to be one huge tree. Or large whatever you want to call it.

Here's a photo of one about 15 years old I would guess. And, it seems to me that you already know that the wires are going to prove to be a bad planting for this tree, and that's just the wires. Dax

Thank you for the picture; it really helps to see. Since it may not work out for the corner I had intended, I am thinking to plant the tree in the backyard ... and put some ornamental grass in front in it's place ... still thinking though ...

Just a thought, but is it possible to prune a spruce, specifically the Fat Albert ?

No. The photo I have shows a narrower specimen of this tree than otherwise seen... I don't know what Google has to offer but most (grafts) will have a very wide base. You need to know that no matter what, your little front area will not work for a 'Fat Albert'.

If you want to trade in your 'Fat Albert' for a 3-4' Picea omorika seedling I have....Yugoslavia origin (very narrow), I'll trade ya. Send an email to conifercollector@hotmail.com

I'm just trying to help. I have all the acreage in the world here, and a neighbor who likes Blue spruces more than anything in the world. I'll give it to them as a gift.

Take care,

Dax

Thank you, gardener365, for the kind offer of a trade.

Actually, I have decided to give the tree a try in our backyard. Our backyard is about 100 ft deep, and we have a big empty space at the far back, in full sun where some hemlocks and a maple came down. I was planning to put something there eventually, but was focusing on the front yard first ... so here's an unexpected start on the back !

Thank you to all for all the helpful advice ... I think I've learned to research and ask before impulse-buying in the future.

I carried a Sunset Western Garden book in my hands for over a year and I read it word for word backwards and forwards that entire period as well. I was of course addicted to plants and wanting to become a nurseryman. Soooo I recommend carrying a book in your car, (and a phonebook, and a pad of paper!!!) ;-)

Dax