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Texas Gardening

Help with Sick Red Rocket Crape Myrtle

16 years ago

My Red Rocket looks sick. First of all, almost all the leaves are red or redish. Some of the leaves are sort of rolled up and have turned brown on the ends. Some leaves have black dots on them. Is this mildew? There are only a couple of buds on the whole thing. My other CMs ( pink ones ) are doing beautifully, bloomimg profusely and no problems. Please advise as to how I can make it healthy again.

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Comments (7)

denisew
16 years ago
It probably has received too much water and is in a place where it doesn't drain well. Try aerating the soil around it with a digging fork and adding some compost. Make sure it isn't planted too deep - if it is uncover it to the root flare so the roots can breath. It does sound like you have a sooty mold/mildew problem. It needs good air circulation. Hopefully with more sun to dry things out, this will clear up the mildew. Here is a link to a garden web page that might help. It is for black spot and mildew on roses, but the same will work on just about any mildew.

Here is a link that might be useful: Garden Web FAQ
texasgal2
Original Author
16 years ago
denisew, Thanks for your reply. Yes, we have certainly had a lot of rain so perhaps that is part of the problem. Wouldn't you know the sickly CM is the one in the front yard ! I will try your suggestions to see if that will help it recover and hopefully bloom. Thanks for the link also.
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Your description and the first image absolutely indicates aphids and the subsequent black sooty mold that goes along with an infestation. The black sooty mold will grow on anything that the aphid's sugary excrement coats....leaves, soil, stems, lawn furniture, etc. I wonder if you are certain that these plants are Natchez. First of all, they don't look like Natchez to me. Secondly, Natchez has proved to be highly resistant to crape myrtle aphids. I wonder if the splotched and blackened foliage we see in these images are a result of pesticide treatments. Do you know what was used? My preferred aphid treatment on crapes is two or three winter season applications of dormant oil, including one just before bud break. Aphids overwinter as eggs, which can be effectively smothered by horticultural oil. In the spring, the young leaves MUST be examined regularly for aphids....which are perfectly visible and easily recognizable. They can be sprayed off with sharp streams of water if caught early. In their normal range, Natchez easily and swiftly attains a height and width of 20-30 feet.
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tonyqclifton_hotmail_com
16 years ago
Speaking or Red Rockets, I have planted one in my back yard that just recently bloomed for the first time, and the blooms came out PINK!?

I'm really upset about it, because I really liked the color of red rockets that I have seen on the internet and was pretty excited about seeing it bloom....

I spoke with someone at millburgers' in san antonio where i bought the 5 gallon plant a couple of months ago and they told me that all of their red rockets are blooming pink at the moment... they told me to give the blooms a chance to mature and that maybe they would change color....

Is this right? do the red rocket blooms change as they get older??
texasgal2
Original Author
16 years ago
jarrette, I bought mine while it was in bloom and the flowers were definitely red. They have always bloomed red since I planted it 3 years ago .It is finally blooming again now though not as profusely as it did last year.
jarrette
16 years ago
well thats really frustrating, I suppose they sold me the wrong tree. Anyone know where I can find red rockets in san antonio?
plano_soc
16 years ago
My red rocket did have a few pink blooms before the blooms turned red.

However, my red rockets have far fewer blooms than my pink crape mrytle.
brad_bradstevens_com
12 years ago
texasgal2: We're experiencing the same problems with our Red Rockets ... the leaves are turning red and brown. Did you ever find out what the problem with your Red Rockets? Did they recover? Was it too much water and/or a smothered root ball?

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