Question
I have a five year old crabapple tree that I moved from one area of my yard to another in late April, after moving it the leaves turned brown, did I kill it? It was in bloom and I did not know that you shouldn't move things while in bloom. What can I do? Is there any hope to revive the tree?

Answer
Here is the proper way to transport a tree--even with this you will get some shock from the move. Make sure  you water and mulch around the tree to help hold the moisture around the roots.

Deciduous trees may be planted either in the spring or the fall. Deciduous plants may be moved in the spring as soon as the frost is out of the ground, up until the time when new foliage is partly unfurled. In the fall, they may be planted once the leaves start to turn color up until the ground freezes. When you want to dig up a tree or shrub for transplanting, retain as much of the root system as possible.

Deciduous trees and all ages of evergreens, can be successfully moved only if a ball of soil is left around the roots. The exposed roots should be protected with moist burlap or newspaper or with polyethylene sheeting. Every effort should be made to reduce root exposure to wind and sun, keeping the ball as moist as possible. It's best to prepare the hole before digging up the tree you wish to move.

Size of the root ball and size of the hole:

For deciduous trees and shrubs the soil ball should be:

Width = 9-12 in. in diameter/every 1 in. of tree diameter
Depth = 6 in./every 1 in. of tree diameter

For example: A tree trunk 2 inches wide would need a soil ball of 18-24 inches wide and 12 inches deep.

Dig the new hole twice the size of the root ball and as deep and fill with good top soil or potting soil. Mulch around the tree with not more than 3 inches deep of organic mulch not piled up on the trunk. Water with 1 inches of water every third day--place a pan under the tree and turn the sprinkler on and when the pan has 1 inch of water in it spot. Do this every third day for the first month then once a week.