Go ahead pic 3, lop that off clean at the trunk.
Pic 4 - the difference in bark now has me thinking you have a grafted tree. Are all three "the same" because they are a cultivated form, i.e. a cultivar.... such as 'Pendula'?

Don't do any cutting until (we) understand better your situation. I see Serbian spruce as the rootstock............

Other than this, your trees are very nice and nothing to be concerned with. I will slightly-mention they were planted very close to one another, but... maybe you wanted that.?

Dax

They are trees, not statues. They will vary - even individuals of the same cultivar vary. They look pretty good given they were just planted. Give them time to adjust and get established. If it were my garden, I would get rid of the turf around the trees and create one bed with mulch for them. Mowing between them will become difficult and you increase the odds of damaging lower branches (which can induce susceptibility to Leucocytospora canker).

The trees look pretty good. The lack of growth may be from transplant shock, which can be helped by making sure that the soil around the roots is always wet. So water them thoroughly at least 2-3 times per week until November.

The only potential issue I see is with pic 4. You might want to give more angles. It looks like a branch that needs to be removed but not sure how much of the tree you will lose if you remove it.

And please do not water your trees 2-3 times per week.

If you don't get min 1" of rain within a given week then set a slow trickle of water at the base of the tree for a couple hours ONCE per week.

Otherwise simple stick your finger (a couple inches) in the soil in a couple spots several inches out from the trunk. If its moist let it be. If its starting to feel just slightly damp then water it.

Otherwise I'd agree for b&b spruces they look just fine.

Are you creating a mulch bed to tie in the maple and hydrangea?

whaas: Why remove any branches? I would only remove them if if they're completely dried and crisp, which doesn't seem to be the case. Doing surgery on a branch that's still alive risks introducing pathogens, as salicaceae alluded to.

Regarding watering: people don't usually measure how much rain they're received in a week, and I would say finger moisture measurements are pretty inaccurate (one side is sunny, one side has grass, etc). If a newly transplanted tree is looking stressed, moisture insufficiency is the first thing I'd try to rule out. Just my 2c :)

Many thanks for your responses!!!

Dax, Whaas: pictures 3 and 4 in my first post show the very same thing from two different angles. Here, you may see some more pictures, showing the same issue:

There is something dripping from the tree, actually two things are dripping: one of them is white, and the other is transparent.
Whaas, if I remove this part, the shape of the tree will not look nice, but if the removal will make the tree healthier, I would prefer to do it - thinking in long term...

The other two trunks look better:

Dax, I am not an expert, and don’t have any experience, but from what I see, it looks to me the trees are grafted. The person that sold me the trees didn’t explain much and maybe I just didn’t asked the right questions… But I definitely asked for the maturity size, because I was looking for conifers with narrow habit, and the seller told me that in my region Serbian Spruce cannot spread more than 12-13 feet. I know that the info in internet is different, but the seller was sure about that. I wanted the trees to overlap in the future and to create a screen and a background for the other plants I am planning to plant. So, now the spruces are 9 feet apart. Actually, they are part of a bigger project. You may see here:

There is a Weeping Katsura and an Autumn Brilliance:

Whaas, Salicaceae: yes, I am planning to create a mulch bed. But everything takes time and I wanted to have the trees planted on time during the spring. Now, little by little we are doing the rest of the project, and I am sure it will take time.

Thank you again for helping me and my trees!

(sorry for the small picture sizes, it looks like the pictures get resized somehow, I will try to fix that in my future posts)

The first two trees have cones, but the third one doesn't have any. Is that a problem?

No.

There is something dripping from the tree, actually two things are dripping: one of them is white, and the other is transparent.

Two branches have been cut quite recently. Obviously it would have been better to cut them close to the trunk.

For Picea omorika I find that their shape is unusual.

I will slightly-mention they were planted very close to one another,

LOL, mine are even closer to each other. I do not see any problem. The tree is very columnar.

So water them thoroughly at least 2-3 times per week until November.

Certainly not! Even if you were living in TX. Once a week would be even too much depending on the weather.

You are always at the mercy of the grower/planter when you don't go pick out your own specimens and plant them yourself. Yes, several are a little ratty looking. My thoughts are they were grown to close together and were not given proper care in the field. Twisted branches tell me that. Don't expect much new growth on topside as they are building root mass. Going into the 3rd year acclimation process should be complete and they will begin to grow.

Do you know how they were planted. Was the wire basket still intact? Most of these planters dig a hole and plop them in and shovel the dirt back back on top loosely.

See what happens. Leave them to sort themselves out. First year is critical. Save your receipt. Hopefully they carry a 1st year return guarantee.

Hoping for the best,

Dave

I agree with the other posters about your first set of photos: pics #3 and #4. If cutting those/that off will create a gaping hole and disfigure the aesthetics of your tree, just leave it be. I do not see any evidence of grafted-trees, now. Those appear to be seedlings.

Thank you for the extra pics - they clarified my questions.

Dax

i think .. on some level.. the only problem here.. is your expectations ...

these trees can live for a hundred year... they do not grow like annual and perennials ...

and you want perfection.. on recent transplant [less then 5 years] ...

all i hope for.. in the first few years.. is that the darn things live ...

we can start pruning.. in 5 years ...

so.. relax.. keep them properly watered.. and finish developing your garden ...

ken

There is a general rule that most gardeners and professionals follow when it comes to pruning new transplants. You only remove dead, diseased or crossing branches.

I don't see any of those with the exception of the stub left in pic three. I'd cut that off just outside the swollen part and I'd also be inclined to remove the branch above and to the left of it as it will be a crossing branch in the future. I'd remove those next spring.

If you click on the pictures they are normal size.
Mike

Thanks again for your advice!

I was thinking the tree is sick and I have to do something now. But you think the tree is healthy and this is just a wonderful news for me. I personally do not like when the branches touch the ground and would prefer to remove the lowest branches... one day. Maybe I would remove this strange branch next spring - as Whaas suggested, and other lowest branches in 5 years - if this is the right time for pruning - as Ken suggested. And meantime, I will try to be patient and to water properly. And I will remove only dead branches.
Also, I will have to observe for diseases - this is something I find really hard... Regarding the crossing branches - I suppose I have to remove them only in the spring.

Nothotsuga: The person, who planted the trees, cut some of the lowest branches just after planting. I mentioned to him that I like the lowest branches not to touch the ground and he told me, that he personally prefers the same and cut some branches. Now, I am under the impression that it was a mistake. After the trees were planted, I read that we do not remove any branches when we are planting…

Anyway… I suppose I will continue to make mistakes but will try, at least, to minimize the number of my mistakes. The problem about dripping is that something is dripping from the branch that hasn’t been cut - that could be seen in the picture 1 and 2 from my second post (from July 12, 2014).

Dave: I wanted to pick out the trees, but I couldn’t find this kind of trees in the nurseries around. I was looking for narrow growing conifers. I visited more than 20 places, and people were telling me that they did not have any, but they could order some for me. So, finally I decided to order.
Regarding the planting - the planter unwrapped the upper part of the wire basket after placing the tree in the hole.

The problem about dripping is that something is dripping from the branch that hasn’t been cut - that could be seen in the picture 1 and 2 from my second post (from July 12, 2014).

Likely the branch was hurt during transport or plantation manipulations. Resin is emitted to seal the wounds. Keep an eye on it. For instance to see if the leaves on that branch are turning dry (= dull colour of the leaves at first). For the time being I will not worry.

You mentioned cones : it would be nice if you can post close-up photos of these cones.

And remember, Picea species are growing once a year and then stop until the next year. Only the roots show a continuous growth.

Thank you, Nothotsuga, for this explanation. I didn't know about this self-healing process.

And here they are - the cones: