Crepe Myrtle shedding bark question??
utdeedee
16 years ago
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Amazindirt (7a TN)
16 years agoutdeedee
16 years agoRelated Discussions
crepe myrtle question
Comments (1)They will grow wider as they send up more stems. You did not say if they were shrub or tree type. Let it grow naturally for a couple of years and then decide what type of plant you want. You can take off all the lower branches if they are the taller variety and enjoy the bark, some varieties are beautiful. My tree types were pruned to 3-5 stems and all the lower limbs were removed several years ago. Now we enjoy the beautiful blooms as well as the cinnomen bark. The bark is especially nice in the winter....See Morecrepe myrtle transplant question
Comments (6)They do transplant fairly easily from my experience. Agree with Chadec7a that it's best to do it in the late winter before they leaf out. You can get a head start by root pruning around the plant so it forms a tighter rootball and will transplant easier. Make a circle with a spade around the approximate size of the roots. Don't dig too deep or try to actually lift the plant out. Do this a few times this summer and fall to keep the roots growing with in that circle. By the time you go to transplant it, the rootball should be nice and compact and easier to move. Crapes do very well by hard pruning because they only flower on new growth. You might benefit by hard pruning after you transplant, but I would research that first....See MoreCrepe Myrtle Questions
Comments (4)Hi, I live in Mojave. I wouldn't put your crepe myrtle in the ground until September. In August, it's just too hot: the only thing I'd plant would be maybe cactus. Depending on the size of the crepe myrtle, you could make the hardware cloth cylinder like lazygarden recommended (works great by the way). Later on or if the tree is taller, I've had good luck with just wrapping an 18-inch tall cylinder of chicken wire pretty close to the trunk a few times. You don't even need to secure it, as long as it's pretty close to the trunk. I did this with some afghan pines the jackrabbits were eating the bark off of a couple of years ago and it still works fine. You don't see the chicken wire until you're really close. Good luck!!...See MoreCrepe Myrtle Questions
Comments (7)Thank you to everyone for your replies! The root balls on both of these trees were in in 15g pots- they didn't appear overcrowded (yet), but they probably would have if they'd stayed in those pots for another few months. We are in a pretty significant drought here in CA, and I looked up the symptoms of tree drought stress- it looks like my backyard crepe myrtle (and another small tree) are stressed out but these ones in the front yard look pretty good. I did see low suckers on the Muskogee, it probably couldn't hurt to give them a really deep watering this week (it's been a while- they're in the lawn with about a foot of space around them, but they're really only getting sprinklers at the moment- I haven't been out with my water tester recently to see how down the water is getting, but I'll make sure to do that soon). Hmmm.... if it's not a Bombay, I wonder what it is.... next time I'm at the nursery where I got it, I'll take a look and see if one of the names on their tags rings a bell. I'm assuming though that the only big difference with these guys is their flower color and possibly size? Care would generally be the same regardless of type? The Muskogee started flowering at the end of May- I'll keep an eye on the other tree and see if it's just a... wait for it... late bloomer! (Haha!)...See Morejustintn_z7
16 years agobehaviorkelton
16 years agoutdeedee
16 years agoljbaack
5 years agoHU-178658043
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Amazindirt (7a TN)