Our First Tree: The Eastern Redbud

The Eastern Redbud was the first tree we had planted on our property, right in the middle of the front yard. It was planted on 5/13/22 and has done very well in its first year. 

Our Eastern Redbud tree the day after it was planted (5/14/22). Top half starting to leaf out and bottom half still showing those beautiful buds.

We chose this tree because it's native and can tolerate our clay soil, it seems less common than other front yard ornamentals such as dogwoods and magnolias, and it adds some really nice late winter / early spring color with its purplish-pink buds. At 10' - 12' tall with a 3" diameter trunk, it was also well developed so it could provide immediate interest to our otherwise bare front yard (we were re-doing the landscaping at the time).

• Location: As the only tree in our east-facing front yard, it definitely receives a full share of sun. While many sources say it prefers full sun, I think it could probably benefit from a little less especially since it's generally an "understory" tree. Throughout the summer, it would at times develop brown spots on its leaves, which I'm now guessing is from lack of water. 
• Watering: After planting, I watered it once a week with the hose (on a very low stream) for 40-60 minutes and would rotate the hose around the trunk at intervals. Looking back, I probably should've watered it two to three times a week for the first month or two. However, once I started sticking with the full 60 minutes, the aforementioned brown spots eventually went away. For the past month, I've been using a tree gator bag with about 6 gallons each week. 

As of mid-October (2022), it has about a dozen seed pods and has started to turn to its fall color of light yellow.  

I have to admit I now slightly regret not planting a larger tree in this spot, as I have a narrow front yard (65 ft) flanked by power lines so it would be difficult to do a big stately tree anywhere else. However, the tree has done well and looks good so I don't think I'll move it. Instead, I 'm considering flanking it with some bald cypresses and/or tupelos, which are generally narrower and will add some really cool fall color.