Sunday, January 8, 2012

The bark is peeling off my crape myrtles. One tree is only putting out a few green stems, mostly at the base.

I don't know what type of Crepe Myrtle you have, but here are a couple of quotes and links that may help you out:

(exfoliating bark is actually a normal condition of crepe)

from: http://www.decaturdaily.com/decaturdaily...

""Natchez" is by far the most common and popular crepe myrtle. It has white flowers and beautiful exfoliating bark. This one does get big, so give it plenty of room.



"So you see, there is a crepe myrtle for just about any sunny spot you may have. There is really no reason to drastically whack your crepe myrtle just to make it fit in a particular place. This is not to say you should never prune crepe myrtles. You can, but only selectively. You may remove any bottom branches that are too low to the ground, in an effort to make it more treelike. The lower branches are removed at the trunk. This practice is known as "limbing up." You also may selectively thin, not cut back the tops. To do this, you would simply remove a few of the branches in the canopy to allow for better light and air penetration. Cutting them back severely as many people do in the winter is totally unnecessary. It not only makes for one disgusting eyesore; it also makes the resulting growth in the spring weak and unable to support the blooms. "



You may want to trim the lower branches that are sprouting at the base in order to give the rest of the tree more energy to branch and leaf out. It may also need to be fertilized.

Happy Gardening!

The bark is peeling off my crape myrtles. One tree is only putting out a few green stems, mostly at the base.
well you could look up your cooperative extension office online and contact them to see what they say about it. extension is based on land grant universities so even if they person you talk to doesnt know they have a university to ask about it.
Reply:The bark tends to peel as a crape myrtles grows. As long as there is new bark underneath don't worry.



The growth as the bottom can be cut back or left to grow. I tend to keep it cut back on my trees as a way to limit its size.
Reply:make sure to fertilize it to keep it healthy
Reply:focus 10 blow dryers on the base of the tree and keep them going day and night for 11 days. After that pray real hard cause the tree will need it


No comments:

Post a Comment