see link regarding planting in clay.. as well as watering... just for general in depth knowledge ... i dont know how 5 minutes of watering.. gets into clay at any depth at all ... regardless.. you are guessing.. take a hand trowel.. and go dig some 3 to 6 inch holes ... and find out if there is any water in the root mass planting .... or too much.. no one can really tell you.. how to water in your soil ... because we dont know your soil ... i think its dead ... to uniform brown across the whole plant ... as compared to struggling ... with damaged areas ... and do understand... with BB plants... we never know.. if they left any usable root.. when it was dug out of the field ... talk with your seller ... and exercise your warranty ... and try to be there when they pull it out.. to see if its wet or dry ... and try to get a fall planting date ... if he insists on leaving it be ... and seeing what happens.. tell him you want the warranty extended 3 years ... and hope he is still around in 3 years .... i wouldnt stand for that.. considering what i presume you paid for it ... and it depends on the nurseries reputation... as compared to some builder related tree dude ... and next time.. go about half size ... the odds go up significantly... as all the various stressors are exponentially reduced ... instant gratification on size.. just complicates the whole process .. and a smaller transplant.. will often.. outgrow the large inside 5 years .... and once.. when this happened to me... and the seller was a bit piqued, suggesting i failed ...... i asked if he would replace it at half size.. and he did so gladly ... this was long before the WWW and i knew a lot about trees.. watering.. etc .... keep us posted ken ps: and if it is really dry.. you might want to try one of those large water sacks... that trickle water.. they might look stupid... for a year or two... but they can really help ... sorry.. i dont have a better term for them ...

No, it's all the way around (though, I suppose that would still mean lawn side, as it is in the middle of the yard). I do have a lawn service that fertilizes every two months year round, but he does not use spray. He just uses the standard pellet fertilizer, just like you would buy at Home Depot. Other than that, I have not put any sort of food or fertilizer on the tree (that I can recall). Here is a picture of the tree from further back.

If it was recently dug from it's former location, many of the roots were severed in the process and it will take some time for it to recover from the shock. A 2" caliper specimen would have had a large, shallow root system, much like a Maple. Dogwoods, however, are a forgiving type of tree. I have one that has been growing in a pot for many years and being in a secluded location, it seems that I always forget about it during long periods without rainfall. The leaves curl, become a crispy brown and fall off. As soon as it rains, it springs back to life. You may also want to check the rootball to see if the moisture is penetrating it. Depending upon the care the tree received after it was dug, the rootball can become hard and compacted and moisture cannot penetrate into the roots. As Eddie stated, I prefer those that are pot grown or field grown in grow bags that confines the roots and none are severed when dug. Best of luck! I believe it will survive. Rb

I pruned my Kouza dogwood over the course of its first 4 years (or so) to open up the interior and remove any crossing branches. This pruning created a well shaped tree, now 20 years later. Yes, remove the lower branches so it is not bushy, if you do not want bushy. Also, envision what it will look like as it matures with the branches you have and want to keep. Remember not to remove more than 20% or the branches in any given year so as not to stress the tree. There are good resources on "young tree training/pruning" which illustrate where to make pruning cuts, shaping a tree properly. Also, prune your tree for the location (such as removing branches which may grow to touch the house).