Hi Journalist- I think we still need to figure out what's going wrong with the bark on your apple tree. Any chance you can post a pic? (I post mine to another site like photobucket or webshots and then just paste the html code that they give you in these posts). Or do a Google Image search for "apple canker" and see if it fits. As for spraying everything with Immunox... You need to be a bit careful when spraying fungicides. You really want to follow the instructions on the label. If the label doesn't specifically say that it's ok to spray certain things, then you should not spray. If you spray your apple with Immunox, I don't think it will matter that there is quite a bit of other rust-infected things near by. For example, across the street from me, my neighbor has 2 neglected apple trees with plenty of rust, yet I got complete control on my property. Spraying at the right time isn't trivial though, so make sure to do lots of research now... when spring comes, you won't have time to figure it all out. Good luck, -Glenn

.... agree with Pam - a cultural issue. Likely over-watering due to excessive water-retention and irrigating too frequently. How have you been fertilizing, and with what? There really isn't enough info to offer specific advice, but sinking your container at least half-way into the soil in a semi-shady spot and watering/fertilizing regularly would probably be a good strategy while you figure out how you can manage to provide a soil that allows you to water at will w/o having to worry about root rot or suppression of root function due to excessive water retention (at repotting time next spring). Once you get your plants in an appropriate soil and start a good fertilizer program, everything gets easier. Keep in mind that if you're going to maintain your trees in containers over the long term, tight roots ARE going to limit your plant unless you learn how to deal with the issue on a regular basis. Potting up doesn't/can't provide a solution to tight roots; it only slightly eases the limitation imposed by the condition. Something for you to read, if you like. Al

Did you ever find out what this was? I was search for the same thing and came across your post. We have several similarities coincidentally. (see pics) We just moved into our first home East of Plano in the Dallas area. The beds in the front of the house are new and were put in by the seller to give the house curb appeal. Shortly after moving in the crepe myrtle turned back, quit growing leaves and powdery white spots appeared all over it. The landscaper we found on NextDoor said fungus and pulled it out and that's when he covered everything in the red mulch. He also moved all the boxwoods and magnolia a foot forward because they were a few inches from the foundation. Later in November he pulled the magnolia tree because it was too close to the house and said they are known to have invasive roots. It had also dropped most of its leaves. The above pictures are how it looked at the beginning of November. Here are a few from today... Since then the boxwoods have all turned from green to dark red. I am worried I am going to have to yank these too. We have a RainBird sprinkler system but do not plan to use it much so I am thinking we might just need to replace them with native Texas plants that are drought tolerant, but I am worried about the existing issue. Especially if it is fungal related. Does this mean that my soil has fungus in it and will affect everything I plant in it? Could the mulch have caused this as this seems to be when the decline started? Also, the magnolia tree was sitting on top of a root the size of a mans leg. It was directionally going toward the house. Should I cut this so it quits growing? Have I wrecked my beds? Please help!

tlbean2004, thank you for your response. I am located in Virginia Beach, VA. Our weather has been fluctuating a lot lately. A couple of the recent days have been very humid and in the 90's while other days have been cool 70's. We have also had spells of dry sunny breezy days and a couple rainy wet days. In regards to pests, I have found a couple of small "regular" spiders and one tiny red spider (spider mite?). I have removed all that I found, sprayed with insecticidal soap and have not seen any others for the last few days. Hopefully, someone here can identify the problem and has a cure. I am rather new to gardening and am learning as I go. :-)