What is the maximum temperature that this type of tree tolerates. Last fall I planted a Weeping Norway Spruce on the south side of my house next to the porch. It got hot direct sunlight most of the day. It dropped needles almost immediately and was dead within a couple of months. I watered it a little everyday, but never seemed to snap out of it. I assumed it was poor root stock and took it back to the store where they replaced it with another very healthy looking tree last week. I planted it in the same spot, making sure I used new soil and decided not to fertilize it immediately. I water it every other day for about five minutes. The needles are showing brown spots at the front of the tree where the sun is pretty hot. How can I protect it until it gets established or is that spot just too hot for that type of tree.

Most literature states hardiness zones from 2 through 6 or 7. Utah seems to fall within this range. There can be a great deal of stress while recovering from being transplanted. While a container grown plant may have all of it's roots, the soil will dry out very quickly and may need more water than one would expect. A balled a burlapped spruce only has a fraction of its roots to recover with and may not be able to keep up in a given location (hot, lots of light). In the Midwest we will not fertilize the first year, which can promote top growth at the expense of roots and make the situation worse. A temporary windbreak will lesson the impacts of the direct sun. Mulching the ground can keep the soil cooler and retain more soil moisture.