Crepe Myrtle Questions

Garden Grove, CA

I have a tree growing in my yard but as of 7-27 it still has not flowered. My neighbor has one 5 feet away and it has already many blooms. I also have a small bush in a wheelbarrel and it also is flowering. Does anyone have an answer as to why mine is not flowering yet?

Troy, VA(Zone 7a)

I noticed here in Virginia that there are two kinds of crape myrtle. One has stiff, spreading upright branches - the other is more "relaxed" as it were. I prefer the latter but I think they flower a little later. Not sure of course, just learning about these myself. I hope someone else can help :-)

I have a crepe myrtle that has a sticky substance sweating out of the leaves, can someone tell me what this is and what causes it?

Thanx
kato

tulips: Louisa is probably on the right track. Pruning a crepe myrtle during the winter months encourages lots of new growth the following spring. Crepe Myrtles only bloom on new growth, so the more new branches are produced prior to bloom-time, the more blooms they will be. This is the primary reason why I prefer to keep my crepe myrtles pruned into a tree fashion. The other reason is I think the tree is more attractive during the winter when bare and pruned.

Kato: You probably have powdery mildew on your tree. Crepe myrtles are very susceptable to this disease. Treat by spraying with Ortho Daconil, or spray with 2 tbsp of baking soda mixed with 1 gallon of water.

Or... don't spray. It depends on how bad the mildew problem is, and how offensive it is to you.

Dave

Garden Grove, CA

I guess I am just impatient...My tree has finally bloomed. I have noticed that there are some other trees nearby that are also just blooming and they are the same pink color...maybe there is a difference depending on color.

This message was edited Tuesday, Aug 14th 7:47 PM

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