My crape myrtles got hammered too, but I'm already seeing more new growth so am sure they'll get past this bump in the road. Most 'in the know' predict they'll be fine, but a bit late blooming due to the catch-up time. This might not be a bad thing - if they bloom late, maybe the Japanese Beetles will have already run their course and let them alone - one can always hope!

I am not sure of the exact protocol for rooting CM suckers, but I think you need a bit of root or a 'heel' - a tag-end of bark/branch/root left where you pulled/cut the piece off the base. Dip the end of that in some rooting powder (or not, but it can make it easier) and the stick it down into a hole (made with a pencil or such) in damp, very well-draining potting mix, press the hole closed around the base, put a plastic bag loosely over the whole thing and leave it in a shady spot for a few days. Water if it seems dry, gently, and remove the bag for a while if it seems too wet. After about 2 weeks, the bag can go altogether. It can take up to 6 weeks to get any root growth, so be patient. Oh yeah, you want to take the cutting from a semi-hard shoot that isn't flowering, about 4-6" long, cut off leaves up to the top 2, and cut them in half, so there is little that needs to grow/be green while new roots grow. I would take several cuttings, because, most likely, about half won't strike for you. In general for removing suckers, if they are coming from the trunk, it's easiest to rub them off as soon as you see them. If you have not, and they are only a few inches long, then also rub them off, and if they are very tall - the usual time for me, I have to admit - then try to break them off at the base. If you cut them, you will get multiple sprouts from the cut surface, but if that is what you can do, do it. If the suckers are from roots, the same applies, but see if you can dig down and break them off, since they are, if possible, even more prone to make multiple sprouts from cut surfaces! It's a LOT easier to rub off/cut a clearly seen sucker, and it dulls your clippers less (if you are cutting them). If branches cross, then look to see which one does the most for the over-all shape of the tree, and take the other, back to the trunk or to its origin. If it's a large branch that needs to come off, then make the first cut a couple of inches deep, or less than halfway through, at the bottom of the branch, a few inches out from the trunk, then cut the branch off , cutting from the top, beyond that, leaving a stub. Last of all, cut the stub off. This will prevent the weight of the branch from breaking it off before you finish and stripping off a section of bark. Hope this is helpful information, and not confusing.

Here's my 2 cents :-) What happened to the bermuda? That stuff is hard to kill even with Roundup. It goes dormant if not watered but usually greens right up with water. You can hit actively growing weeds with weed killer if you want and there are just too many to pull out. Newspaper and mulch will work if you are creating beds or trying to add organic matter before sod but only if the bermuda is truly dead. It will laugh at your feeble attempts to smother it :-) I like organic fertilizer and use alfalfa pellets from the local feed store. I spend about $12 for fifty pounds and can do my entire yard twice with that bag. The pellets are too big for my spreader so I just fling them with a dustpan liberally over the lawn and gardens, then water. Smells good and completely safe for everyone. The fall feeding is the most important of the year. The saplings may respond to round up in a zip lock bag, just tuck the sapling into a bag, pour on enough RU to saturate and leave it. I used this method to kill trumpet vine. It will drink it up and hopefully kill the roots. There is stronger stuff for stumps and brush too which is sprayed or painted on cut wood. If the stump is really large, you can drill into it and fill the holes with stump killer. I've also heard of pouring white sugar into holes but have no experience with that method. I hope you take this advice in the light-hearted attempt at humor that was intended.

I agree that they appear to be suckers. They're probably all growing along a surface root. You can scrape away some of the grass and topsoil to see if it's even possible to move the with a sufficient amount of roots to survive. Usually suckers like this don't have a lot of roots of their own within a root ball. They're feeding off the larger structure.