Question
QUESTION: I live 30 miles SE of Dallas, TX.  With Sandy/Clay soil.My sister gave me a large pot grown Japanese Maple last fall.  We planted it in a semi-shaded garden.  It started leafing out in early March.  Now I am noticing some of the leaves are withering.  No spots or discoloration, just withering and curling up and dying.  It is watered regularly, surrounding soil is aways moist 1/2"deep.  It is a lovely tree and would hate to lose it, any suggestions?

ANSWER: May be too wet or not planted properly. too much water can be as bad as too little water.

The hole to plant the tree in should have been about twice the size of the rootball and as deep and fill the excess with good top soil or potting soil, mulch with not more than 3 inches of organic mulch and water about once a week with 1 inch of water. place a pan under the tree and turn the sprinkler on and when the pan has 1 inch of water in it stop. this will insure deep watering and the mulch will hold the moisture.

Trees go through quite a stress during planting and sometimes will drop their leaves as the root system is growing. They should leaf out again. I would lay off the water until the soil starts to dry and then deep water as above once a week.

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QUESTION: I believe you are correct about the over watering.  I have stopped watering; we have been getting rain. More leaves have shrivelled, mostly near the top center area.  But new leaves are growing on the upper sides of the tree. New braches are also sprouting near the bottom of the tree - new branches and new leaves.  Should I cut off the shrivelled leaves - they don't seem to be falling off on their own?  How can I tell if too much damage has already been done and the tree should be replanted elsewhere?

Answer
I would leave the tree as is --the stress of moving it might kill it. I would leave the leaves alone they should will fall off on their own. If they are still attached usually means the branch is still alive. IF you really need to cut the leaves off make sure you cut only the leaf and not into the twig or branch. Cut back on the water and see what happens.