Thanks Seil :-) I wonder though if Julia Child has a more consistent size across climates, it's small to medium down here. Whereas Buck roses change--according to the Buck rose website Carefree Beauty is a small shrub and ARE in TX says medium to large?? I should post to the general forum I think.

IMO, leans such as either tree shown in this thread are ultimately insignificant. There will be so much growth in various directions as to make it completely non-issue. OP, while it is admirable that you bothered to follow directions with the planting, those cards are just as often wrong as right. The usual "plant at same depth as in the pot" or whatever completely misses the point that the root flare, that zone of buttressed growth where roots diverge from trunk, is to be left visible upon completion. Since trees are dug in nursery rows after various cultivation practices have thrown soil up over what will be the root ball, that can be completely obscured. Also in potted stock, the plant may well have been placed too deeply into the pot at some point. So directions of that sort are virtually of no value. I always advise that when in doubt about the truth of this concept, people take a walk in the woods and perhaps for the first time in their lives, see how trees actually grow. They kind of sit on top of the ground. And yes, a too-deep planting surely can start a tree down the road to bark/stem abnormalities although as Ark also points out, we can't know for certain what caused this with yours. +oM

Marguerite - I would imagine this is just your typical 'Hummel's Sunset'. They mention it was grown outdoors so my guess is it just received that coloring from a lot of sun exposure. I have also seen them referred to as "sunset jades" before. -Erica

New Hampshire and a couple of others have had it in the past. Just currently out. May just have to wait another year for them to get back in stock.