This JM seedling appeared and I'd love to save it but know I've read they shouldn't be moved at all for the first two years. I need help! There's no way it can stay where it is for two years!

Thank you.

Are you sure it's don't move them until the 2nd year or don't move them until the 2nd set of true leaves appear? For small finicky volunteer plants/seedlings in the ground I take my bread knife and cut a circle around the plant about twice as deep as it is tall and a minimum of 6 inches away from the stem. I then let it sit for a week or so and watch it's reaction. If it doesn't react by wilting after a week I take a shovel and dig it up. I've had good success doing this.

If it does wilt then I leave it until it recovers then dig it up.

This is similar to what @Xeramtheum suggested, only uses a shovel instead of a bread knife and takes a bit longer.

Our local nursery had advised me to make a deep cut with a shovel...just once. Then wait several days. Make a second cut...wait...etc. until the shovel cuts encircle the root area. Waiting gives the small roots a chance to re-group and re-grow. After about 2 weeks of this cutting/waiting you should be able to lift it with a large amount of soil intact and move it to a better place.

Good luck

Great. I'm so thankful to both of you.

I can understand the cutting or shovel cuts and allowing for the plant to slowly adapt.

There is yet another one in another garden, surrounded by lilies. I can't shovel into that spot, nor can I knife around it without slicing apart my lilies but perhaps this fall I can attempt to lift the lilies and save the seedling.

Let's hope both of these will be worth the work.

Thank you, Anne and Greene!

Yesterday I found three red maple seedlings so I'll practice on them. After digging and potting, how long will it take to know if they survived? A month?