I planted 5 Red Rocket crape myrtles along a fence two years ago. They are about 8 feet tall, each with 4-5 trunks about 2-3 inches in diameter and in full bloom. Last night we had a heavy rain and all of the branches are bending toward the ground, some touching the ground. I'm afraid they may break. Should I stake them or support the branches some how? Any suggestions? I have never cut or pruned any of the branches, except dead or damaged ones and I remove the little suckers that grow at the base of the trees.
Crape Myrtle 'Red Rocket' - drooping after heavy rain
Wondering if gently shaking off all those little droplets of moisture clinging to and weighing down those big ole blossoms would help? I do that with my shrubs when they are weighed down with snow... Just go slowly and do one little bloom bunch at a time . Start with a branch that wouldn't matter so much if it did break...Crepe myrtles are pretty tough. Also check if soil is waterlogged after being so dry..makes root uptake more difficult with only water now where oxygen was...
Good luck
Judy
How is your CM doing? I just picked up a Red Rocket, it was a bargain plant with a broken main branch I expect it will grow in just fine.
coleup - I gave them a good shaking, it released some of the weight, now they are not so close to the ground. Hopefully, they wil straighten up again.
HollyAnnS - They look great, beautiful red flowers -- humming birds love them. They don;t look so nice bending toward the ground, but I love them.
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