a good start is to understand that it is not a shrub.. nor a tree ....it is a conifer .... each is pruning in a different manner ... once you understand what it is... it will be easier to learn about what you might want to do ... the best example of artful pruning would be bonsai ... what you want to do is the same principle... you just arent trying to shrink the plant ... google 'bonsai conifers' or some such thing ... flip over to the images page.. and just study the pix ... also ... find the latin name of the plant... again type what you know into google ... and then again.. flip to the images page.. and just look at how yours compares to what you see ... see if the muse of pruning strikes ... i am of the opinion.. that conifers will attain their own beauty on their own terms.. and dont really need me pruning them all into a perfect xmas tree shape .... yours is the first time i have run across a post by someone ... who like me... is thinking ... along the lines of.. the weirder the better .... or as you call it ... artful pruning ... the simplest guide i can give ... look at your hand... never cut off a finger at the nail .... or you will get weird growth at the tip .... if you want to remove something... remove a branch where it attaches to another branch ... or remove a finger at the hand ... and most important .... this is easily a ten year project .... you can always take more off later .... you cant put it back on .... good luck ken

You will love your dwarf burfurdiis. They grow so slowly that you can easily keep them pruned at whatever size you want, and the deep green foliage and berries are beautiful. I would also direct your attention to Soft Touch Holly. It lends itself to a formal setting without being too stiff, and is exactly the size you're after. I second the motion for Yaupon, Nana (according to Southern Living Garden Book it is fully hardy in zone 7) and for the dwarf Nandinas. Also, Korean Boxwood is an excellent small evergreen. It is slow-growing. I keep mine at 2.5 feet high and wide with one, or occasionally two shearings a year. The truth is, your choices are more limited in the southeast in the very low size range you are specifying for evergreens. In addition, check out the Encore Azalea website. I just used Autumn Chiffon and Autumn Empress in two designs, and these two would fit your size requirements to a tee. The first is white with pink markings, the other a very rich red-orange.

no in-ground amendments ... see link below ... regardless of clay or not.. you might try planting high .. and adding a good quality topsoil ... to the mound ... half the root mass.. goes in native soil ... half above ... often ... it is not the soil itself.. but rather.. planting in a foreign soil.. with the peat like potting media ... and the plant never gets outside the hole .. by planting high.. in a good soil ... you give it time.. to get past the actual planting.. and put its own roots into the native soil ... and there would be the added issue.. of bare rooting.. in the proper planting season ... to get rid of the potting media .... you need to pull it out.. and observe what it did underground ... i would NEVER.. rely on LAWN sprinklers.. to water trees .. its usually not of long enough duration .. to get down the 6 to 12 inches [depending on how big you planted] ... to get to the trees root zone ... not to mention.. if you are growing blue plants ... wearing off the surface wax.. that makes them blue ... and finally ... NEVER PLANT IN AUGUST ... just because you buy it.. does not mean it proper planting time .. i believe that is also covered at the link ... i increased my success rate by 25% learning that lesson ... you have to insert finger.. 2 or 3 inches.. and FIND OUT ... if you are getting water to the root zone ... now dig it up.. and snap some pix.. and lets see what happened down under ... ken https://sites.google.com/site/tnarboretum/Home/planting-a-tree-or-shrub

it depends on your soil ... does it drain properly .. if you dont know.. perk it ... https://duckduckgo.com/?q=perk+garden+soil&t=ffcm&iax=videos&ia=videos if bad non draining clay.. plant high ... if good drainage.. plant the root flare at soil surface ... water it in heavily at planting.. and dont water it again.. UNTIL IT NEEDS IT ... insert finger to find out ... in fall ... it might not need water until the heat starts in late spring.. but check every now and then ... i NEVER fert trees/shrubs.. etc.. here is a good primer : https://duckduckgo.com/?q=perk+garden+soil&t=ffcm&iax=videos&ia=videos bloom book is great.. but be careful with Brit books ... they are 2/3 of the way to the north pole.. yet can be z 7 to 9 [ the north atlantic drift]... so you have to interpret that to your situation ... sun intensity that far north is also very low comparatively speaking ... its hard to believe.. with 16 years under your fingernails.. you claim to be a newb ... lol ... bottom line.. its a tree... not a child.. plant it;. water properly.. and ignore it.. its not a child that need to be fed.. clothed or educated ... dont love it to death ... its not a water loving annual or perennial ... ken