Texas Mountain Laurels really are "slow but steady". Using a fertilizer such as Dr. Earth (orange bag) will not hurt! Good luck :)

If anything can accelerate TML's growth, it's Medina Hasta Gro plant food. Foliar feed every two weeks in spring; switch to soil drench in summer.

Is it true that tml doesn't transplant very well? I have a 5' tree I wanted to move to a different spot. Any advice?

Just keep mulching it, maybe some compost, and water during any extended dry periods. That really should be all you need. Medina products are great as mentioned and wouldn't hurt the tree.

kimivu: TML has a reputation for being difficult to transplant because transplanting a 5' tree tends to leave roots behind. The tree dedicated years to getting those roots established, and it resents having them disturbed/chopped off during the transplanting process. To optimize the procedure, dig deeply around the tree outside the drip line before attempting to lift the root ball. Years ago, I was part of a four-man crew that transplanted a six-footer. Once we had dug to 2' deep all around the tree, each of us used our shovels simultaneously to leverage the root ball out of the ground. I can't promise that we didn't leave any roots behind, but the tree survived in its new home. Back then, we weren't aware of the benefits of liquified seaweed when transplanting, so we used plain old tap water. Drenching the soil with 1 oz/1 gal seaweed once a week helps any species overcome transplantation shock, and you can use it any time of year. Despite these measures, if you notice any part of the transplanted tree suffering from stress, remove it to compensate for root loss. Finally, it takes a while for TML to recover and reestablish its roots, so you may not see any top growth for 2-3 years.