Fertilizing Crepe Mrytles

10 years ago

Hiya- I live in MD zone 7 I think & planted a baby red dynamite crepe myrtle in July 2013. It bloomed beautifully, but I am wondering if I should fertilize it and when. The main purpose is for more blooms, I'm not worried about the foliage. What type of fertilizer should I use and when should it be done? Please share, thank you! :-)

This post was edited by furbank on Thu, Jan 16, 14 at 11:41

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Comments (10)

j0nd03
10 years ago
They don't need much in the way of fertilizer. If you want more blooms, deadhead the crape myrtle when it is close to finishing flowering. This should cause it put out new growth with new flowers. That's what I have done on some of my crapes anyways and it has always worked.

It certainly looks happy as can be in the pic you posted. I would not do this on a shrub that appeared to be struggling along which doesn't appear to be the case with your plant. Dynamite's are little slower growing than other crape varieties but their bloom and fall color make up for it IMO. I have two of them.

John
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
10 years ago
replant it.. roots down.. it will grow much better .. than as pictured ... lol ....

if you fertilize the lawn.. it will get more than enough of whatever it needs ...

over fertilizing is worse than no fert ....

its not fully established.. for the large transplant ... so make sure it does not go into drought this summer... but dont drown it ...

should be pretty much free range after this summer ...

another way to think about it.. is that flowering is genetic ... you arent going to force it to bloom more.. thru force feeding ...

but do be aware.. mass producers do hyper-fertilize to make money ... so dont be surprised.. if it doesnt bloom as pictured this year.. it has to do with the transplant.. rather than your lack of feeding it ...

i would extend the mulch ring .... and i would fear if you have a lawn service that sprays weed and feed ....

good luck

ken
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brandon7 TN_zone7
10 years ago
I agree with what the others said, your crApe myrtle doesn't appear to need any extra fertilizing. Over fertilization can be detrimental.

I have seen limited rebloom after crApe myrtle deadheading. You are likely to get some extra rebloom, but it probably won't be even close to the initial flush. And, very importantly, deadheading is NOT crApe-murder, so avoid going down that patch.

Given that picture, I'd guess you were in Australia (at the bottom of the world).
furbank
Original Author
10 years ago
a BIG thank you to all the follow ups! @ Ken - I originally planted the tree roots down. Please explain why I should retransplant it? I really don't understand :-/ If any one agrees with this method, your thoughts are welcomed. Thanks
j0nd03
10 years ago
LOL your picture is upside down ergo the land down under and roots down comments ;-)
brandon7 TN_zone7
10 years ago
Just in case you don't know, the reason your picture is upside down is because GardenWeb has a glitch. It's not your fault.
furbank
Original Author
10 years ago
OMG! LOL The pic isn't upside on my end :-) no wonder I didn't get it! Thanks everyone
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
10 years ago
one of the reasons i made that comment.. was to find out.. if you saw it right side up.. or upside down like us ... lol

and i am glad you have a sense of humor ...

listen to me.. except for proper water this year ... the only thing you can do by loving this plant... is to kill it with too much love ...

watering is addressed at brandons web site.. at the link ... yes.. this brandon ... and that would basically be.. a good deep drink.. thru the whole mass you planted.. and then not watering it again.. until your finger inserted 2 or 3 inches.. indicates it is hot or drying.. hot meaning it will be dry soon ... then another deep drink.. none of this watering it like a lawn.. or spraying it like a car in the driveway ....

if this thing dies.. it will have to do with what happened to it prior to your owning it .... or how rootbound it was in the pot.. or how it was planted ...

and dont freak out.. if you didnt plant it totally correct ... its a RUN IT OVER WITH THE TRUCK plant... you are going to try real hard to kill it .. and that is one reason.. it doesnt need fert ... its just not a foo foo plant ...

good luck

ken

Here is a link that might be useful: link
jerseygirl07603 z6NJ
10 years ago
Ditto what everyone else said. Mine is about 8 yrs old, never fertilized and it blooms beautifully. If you feel like doing something, you could snip off the seed pods in early spring before it leafs out, to tidy it up. Or not. It's not crucial.
aquilachrysaetos
10 years ago
I don`t feed mine ever. Just periodic deep soaks. My soil is rocky and sandy and pretty poor. The Crapes don`t care.

There is so much beautiful about a Crape whether it's in bloom or not. I value mine as much for their fall color as for their flowers.

Dynamite is poky, so be patient with it. The one in the back yard squatted there for about three years before it took off. I have one by the front gate that will be in the ground three years this spring. Hoping to see it do the same.