Crape Myrtle Purchase Advice
Hello,
I am looking to purchase three Crape Myrtle trees that will be planted in a grassy area between a sidewalk and street. What I'm ultimately looking for is something that will have a nice single trunk, grows fairly upright and stays somewhat compact or at least doesn't weep too extremely at the canopy, and will grow pretty fast. And also I'm looking for something that has a nice deep purple, or pink to dark pink/fuscia kind of color with a great bark and decent trunk size. It seems like all the varieties I like the most (for example Twilight or Powhatan) can get very tall. I probably wouldn't want them getting any higher than around 16' because I fear they will look out of place.
I'm told you really can control the height and shape of most upright Crape Myrtle trees pretty easily but I could definitely use some advice on how true this is and if there are other varieties I should look into. My has a lot of new construction - mostly duplex style houses with vinyl siding and all pretty close to each other. My goals in planting these is to break up the vinyl monotony and also shield myself from it a bit. I'd rather look out my window and see a few nice trees!
Thanks in advance.
Comments (15)
Toronado3800 Zone 6 St Louis
8 years agoJP Caudill
8 years agoRelated Discussions
Advice on Healthy Pruning of Crape Myrtle
Comments (7)MarenAl, ok i see. I have pruned many trees on my property in a healthy, natural way. In fact, my husband and I do this every winter when we can see the overall form and entire branch structure of the trees (crapes, ornamental pears, redbud, maple). for your crape, I would suggest that you could easily remove one entire trunk w/o harming the tree, nor the overall appearance of it. Looking at the first picture you sent, I count 4 main trunks (crapes are best as multi-trunked trees). I am counting from left to right at ground level. Look carefully before you make any cuts, but I think you could remove trunk #4 the one nearest the deck, furthest from the white arbor/pergola. Make the cut at ground level. You could remove the upper parts of that trunk first, to make the final "timber!" fall more manageable! Then you should remove any smaller branches of the other trunks, that cross or rub with another, or that go inward and not in the nice fountain shape of the mature crape. In my opinion, your tree could stand an overall "thinning out." To do that you remove some of the smaller branches all the way to where it meets a larger trunk, don't lop if off halfway. To drop the overall height of the tree, as well, which would help with the drooping of heavy flower clusters, you could remove maybe the top 1/4 of the tree, keeping the nice rounded shape, don't square it off. Do one cut at a time, carefully stepping back and looking at the overall picture, each time you cut. Hope this was helpful! Laurie...See MoreUnderplanting Advice - crape myrtles with smoke bushes?
Comments (6)you dont define the plant you are calling a smoke bush ... amybe the TX smoke bush is different than the MI smoke bush.. of which i am totally blanking on the name.. oh.. Cotinus coggygria .... i had one.. that grew to the gutters of the house... and 5 feet beyond ... before i cut it to 6 inches.. and 2 years latter.. it was back up to the gutters .. a rather aggressive plant that doesnt sound like something that will fit nicely .. UNDER some other plant ... ken...See MoreCrape Myrtles And Cherry Trees For Northeast Ohio
Comments (27)Thanks, Toronado. I may or may not. I haven't decided. I really wanted a Crape Myrtle tree but that's apparently not going to happen. I've already prepared the areas around the house for the plants and Shrubs I've ordered. There really isn't anywhere I could put a Crape Myrtle shrub. I do have one spot appx. twelve feet long by six feet wide that is currently occupied by what looks to me to be a Weeping White Mulberry tree. Some idiot planted this weeping tree three feet from the garage foundation and two feet away from a sidewalk. The tree roots cracked and heaved the sidewalk last year but haven't yet affected the garage foundation. The top of the tree is brushing against the roof, which is nine feet above ground level. I'm going to remove the sidewalk, the small concrete patio and the weeping tree next year. I'm going to have a friend bring his trackhoe onto the property and dig down deep enough with the bucket to remove the weeping tree with the hopes of saving it and replanting it elsewhere. I'm fairly certain that he can remove it in such a manner that the majority of the root structure will remain intact. You can see the weeping tree in the photo included with this post. This is the south side of the house. All the other shrubs and trees you see in the photo were removed last year and the beds are bare. This photo was taken in the late afternoon and as you can see that particular area, the east side of the garage, does not get afternoon sun. It gets about four hours of morning sun. For this reason I don't think Crape Myrtles would do very well there as they wouldn't get enough sun. It's my understanding that Crape Myrtle shrubbery also needs to be planted farther away from structures. I suppose for this area I'll have to plant some shade loving shrubbery. I would want shrubbery that either flowers, has berries or has colorful leaves, leaves that either do or do not change with the seasons. Although I know that it would probably make a landscape architect cringe, I don't particularly care for needle leaf shrubbery, for contrast reasons or otherwise, although I have some on the north side of the house that will remain. The area you see that is still getting afternoon sun is where the Azaleas will be planted. This bed for the Azaleas doesn't get full sun all day, as you may think by looking at the photo. As the sun tracks over the house this area gets about six hours of morning/early afternoon sunlight and about four hours of sunlight that is broken up by some fairly large Oak trees on my property and the property of the neighbor to the east of me, trees that you can't see in this photo. I suppose this is called dappled sunlight. I would appreciate any suggestions for what would do well in this afternoon shaded area, the area from the weeping tree to the garage man door. I have no intention of building a deck in the future so that doesn't enter into the equation. As I mentioned, the small concrete patio will be removed....See MoreRed Rocket Crape Myrtle Leaves Turning Dark/Black
Comments (2)The plant is ok, there's nothing wrong with it. It's just producing large amounts of anthocyanin (red pigments) in the leaves maybe in response to the large amount of sun it gets. Actually the flowers can fade on cloudy days because it doesn't get enough sun i think....See MoreUser
8 years agolast modified: 8 years agoI think crapes will look wonderful there. Have a reputable, local nursery help you choose exactly what you need. Take your picture to show them. You can easily find the size you need, in order not to be tempted to crown them later.
I have six crapes in my yard, these two are different varieties that I bought 12 yrs ago, both were single trunk in the pot. The second pic is a large shrub variety that I train as a multi-trunk tree. I just snap shoots off as I see them. I'm sorry I don't remember their names, but they're common varieties most nurseries carry. All three of these stay under 16 ft. I wish I could remember the exact name of the one on the right (first pic)--I think it would be ideal for your plan.
JP Caudill thanked UserJP Caudill
8 years agoUser
8 years agolast modified: 8 years agoLooking at your pic again, my concern would be width, and how much they'll grow past the bed line. All of my crapes drip with a sappy substance, so that's something to consider regarding vehicles parked there. I can't tell how narrow the bed is, but just wanted to point out that they can be messy over concrete. This one is how I know (it gets very messy over my driveway)--
JP Caudill
8 years agoUser
8 years agoJP Caudill
8 years agoUser
8 years agolast modified: 8 years agoJP Caudill
8 years agolast modified: 8 years agoUser
8 years agoJP Caudill
8 years agotheyardbird
8 years ago
PROCrapeMyrtleGuy
7 years ago
rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7