Avoid transplanting on sunny or windy days to reduce plant stress from exposure to too much light or drying winds. Wrap exposed trees and shrubs with burlap or plastic to keep them from drying out from the wind when transporting from the nursery. If possible, dig the holes before you get or dig up the plants. This will greatly reduce exposure time and the plants will be less likely to dry out. Get the plants into the ground as soon as possible.
Small plants are usually more vigorous, grow faster, and are easier to handle.
But be sure to consider the mature plant size when locating the plants to avoid future overcrowding and possible disease problems. Before doing any digging, determine which plants, native or others, will best fit your landscape needs. Also, be sure to contact your local utilities to layout where the lines are so you don't accidentally cut something important. However, they can be transplanted any time during the year. It is critical that bare-root plants be transplanted while dormant.