Yes, we are Sunset 3B here.... The sunshine on most days and temps in summer is the reason so much agriculture grows successfully here. Of course, they irrigate. I am surprised Wenatchee is the same zone as us, but I guess it doesn't take into account the amount of snowfall they get (They are probably the -15f extreme.. we are more like -5f.) RE: the suitability of the trees I listed, The Thornless Honeylocust seems to thrive here, it does well in alkaline soil and is drought tolerant. As a prairie tree, it thrives in full sun. I have noticed many honeylocusts in yards that do not irrigate, growing just fine... The list of negatives of the tree is pretty short, and it seems very adaptable to our conditions. Linden -- RE: irrigating, I don't know. We will have some lawn on the property, so a tree/trees in that area would get more water. Linden tolerates alkaline soil and has small leaves... Thus, it seemed to be an *option.* ash -- I still have to go to our local extension office.. I will ask them about borers here. Ash also tolerates alkaline soil and was another option for my lawn area. If the borers are that bad here, I won't consider it.

Dwight, without seeing the tree, I can only suggest that it is suffering from "transplant shock". While you say "I've soaked the rootball several times this week,", how much water have you actually put on it, for how long? You really need to soak the whole root ball well, and it may be that you aren't doing that. If it's been really hot or windy, that's an aditional stressor for the tree, as much as being moved. I would truly soak it for several hours on a slow drip, and then wait and seee what it looks like - you don't want to drown it any more than you want to dry it out. If you didn't mulch it, I would do so, as widely as you can manage, no more than 4" deep, and no mulch in the 2-3" next to the trunk. Any organic mulch will be fine. 'Butterflies' is a deciduous magnolia, so it would loose its leaves this fall anyway. As long as the cambium layer - just under the bark - is still green, on the branches - scratch lightly at a branch to see - then I wouldn't worry too much. Just don't run out weekly to check, you may scratch off all the bark. Trim off any winter-killed branches come spring. Keep the roots watered - stick a finger down in the soil to be sure it needs it - the top 2-4" of soil will be dry - don't water on a set schedule. Keep it watered until the ground freezes, and if you get any really warm spells in the winter. Treat it as a newly planted tree, and keep it well watered for the next 2-3 years. Don't feed it now, nor for another year or so, and use a fertilizer rated for trees and shrubs, that lists magnolias.

bboy, ginkgonut, and, others: Thanks for all the helpful information, and especially, your opinions regarding this Magnolia variety. bboy: What exactly about my climate will cause the flowers to wash-out of color? Is it the cold springtime temp's? Can you explain a little more about how temp's. may affect color? The tree that I have my eye on looks to be at least 10 years old, and, has a nicely tapered trunk, measuring about 1-1/2" diameter above the wide, root base, continuing up the first 4 feet of the trunk, then from there, it gradually tapers down to about 3/4" diameter, over the next 3-4 feet. The tree is very well branched, with a nice shape too. I would guess that the tree is probably either at, or, very near, blooming-size. How old do you think these trees must be to produce a good display of flowers? Can I prune back some of the elongated branches, - after flowering - to induce dormant buds to break along bare wood so that more flowering twigs/branchlets are produced from the older, leaf nodes? Thanks, to all, for sharing your experiences, photos, opinions. I was a great help. Frank

rhizo Good points - the trees are planted on a slight slope and I was concerned that that they were planted too high and that the root ball might dry out. I could have overwatered them. We barely had any rain fall for 2 months. The twine was removed from the root ball. Thank you for responding. I have always wanted a magnolia and I am thrilled at now having 5 of them.