FredL

Carl I've collected lots of trees and, probably more importantly, transplanted lots of vegetable seedlings over the years and my observation is just the opposite of what you are thinking: it is best to collect in the late afternoon to allow plants to recover over night before they have to face the heat of the mid-day sun. Of course, as noted earlier, a cloudy, or better yet, a rainy day is even better. In that case it doesn't really matter. Best of all is a rainy day at the beginning of a wet spell lasting several days. This gives even trees that are pretty banged up a pretty good chance of survival in early to mid Spring.

Best regards, Fred