St Lawrence supplies cold hardy trees and they are located in upstate NY. I have St Lawrence trees at my orchard in Upstate NY and I have more ordered! Emerald Beaut along with the new Pluots and hundreds of other stone fruits were bred by Zaiger genetics in California. Don't let the name fool you the trees haven't been gene spiced but they are 'back-crossed' repeatedly until desired traits are enhanced. These new fruits are an explosion flavor and sweetness. They require long growing seasons to ripen sweet. Folks in California z9-10 with long growing seasons are challenged with pollination difficulties and cracking of the fruit. The best plums to grow in z5a in Colorado are the American Hybrid plums. Which St Lawrence grows and can deliver this fall. Superior, Alderman and Waneta are large and tasty. They ripen at different times in the summer. Emerald Beaut(Zaiger) is sold by Raintree but is probably grow by Dave Wilson's in California.

Alexa, A local nursery handles all their b&b trees that have rootballs in clay exactly how you have handled this tree. That is, except for the fact that they usually do not get in such small b&b trees. Too bad your replacement tree was not shipped while it was still dormant. I have heard that beech trees do not like to be transplanted, so maybe that is why the supplier shipped yours leafed out with a rootball in clay, which keeps the roots disturbed as little as possible. For the size of your rootball, and the tree's height, two inches on the sides is enough for your well draining potting soil. Hopefully you put stones or broken pot pieces, or packing peanuts in the bottom four to five inches of your pot and then covered that with the potting soil prior to installing the tree and back filling the sides of the pot with potting soil. If not I would be a little concerned about mold setting up in in the bottom of yout tall pot. The nursery I mentioned which pots up their b&b trees like you potted yours uses a pot which is not much deeper than the root ball. I find it of concern that your pot is so deep. Am I wrong, though, was your tree's clay rootball nearly as deep as your pot with only a few inches left in the bottom for you to first fill with potting soil? Other than those concerns, I think keeping the new tree in full day, dappled shade is nearly perfect conditons for helping this new tree to prosper, until it is large enough for transplanting. At that time, you are going to transplant it just prior to it breaking dormancy, aren't you? Only other thing, Depending on if your pot-fill drains as well as a good quality potting soil, then you should pour 5 gallons of water through the pot at each watering session. If not the roots will not have enough moisture exposure to hold the moistness they need. A Nursery attendant has told me that the perfect way to kill a potted shrub or tree, is to water it daily, but run only a gallon or two of water through the pot each watering session. He said that the root ball need the time it takes to run five gallons of water through the pot, to be conditioned for absorbing the amount of water that the tree or shrub needs. Only thing with running that much water through your pot each time you water, it will wash away the ferilizer. So, you must instead use a slow-release, non-burning food that is appropriate for your tree's needs. If the tree could have been planted in the ground I would not suggest feeding it. But since it is in dappled shade, and in a pot which you must run five gallons of water through daily, I think it does need to be fed as I just described.

I agree Strawberry! And it really helps to put something in a bush picture that includes scale (like a person) I have been reading what others in the general area have said about the size of their plants, most seem to be bigger than listed on hmf. I hate to put a plant in that I will have to fight with for space or peer over the railing and point it out. Everything I got is own root, so it can be in the main garden with the chickens or up by the house and protected. I would also like some nice views for the neighbors and a thorny reminder for midnight fruit pickers that the grocery store is a better spot for picking fruit. Plus I want a nice view from the house to the garden. Lots of place to put the ones I picked out, and if they are not suited to the prospective location....well shoot means I need to order a few more right!

I am also waiting on a C&B sectional (US manufactured, with US manufactured fabric) Ordered in July, so my story isn't that bad yet. Though it has been pushed from early November to late December And basically customer service has said they have zero control over the delivery date My take away from that is December is just a date and means nothing. For what its worth, I did order a custom bedframe (but no upholstery) from Room and Board. They met their delivery date (beat it by 10 days in fact) - the lead time was like 18 weeks, but at least they seem to have a realistic grasp on timing. I wish I had picked a sectional from there. I also think if they can't even tell me if the sectional has been started, I should be able to cancel it. Its a stock fabric, just custom configuration