Question
I just transplanted my 5 year old 7' japanese maple tree a couple of days ago. I noticed that the leaves are beginning to curl up and get dry. Is this normal? I dug out the root ball and kept the ball moist. It was in the ground with in 2 hours after removel. Any suggestions or help would be greatly appreciated.

Answer
Part of the problem is the timing of the transplanting.
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.
Older 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.

The new hole should be twice the size of the rootball and as deep as the rootball. Mulch the tree with not more than 3 inches of mulch and water.
I would guess that you did not keep enough root system to allow the tree to get water at the same rate it was before it was moved. trees usually go through a stress after transplanting and in your case the season was wrong and the warmer weather is causing the tree much problems. About all that can be done now is to mulch and water. Water with 1 inch of water every third day (put a pan under the tree and turn the sprinkler on and when the pan has 1 inch in it stop.