Description
General care for any tree or shrub is easy, please educate yourself and follow these simple rules.
Caring for Crape Myrtles - Lagerstroemia
Once established, crape myrtles become quite drought tolerant. They can do just as well in dry sandy soil as they do in moist well-draining soil and are fast growing often putting on two feet or more of new growth in a single season. When caring for crape myrtles it is important to understand that they often remain dormant well into the spring (or early summer), especially in cooler climates after being transplanted. Once the root system establishes, the crape myrtle will reliably emerge sooner, but still leafs out late in the spring compared to other trees. Cold weather is detrimental to crape myrtle trees, so when planting in zone 6 it is recommend to plant out of the winter wind if possible. Heavy mulching of 3-4 inches will protect the roots of a crape myrtle in the winter. If a winter is particularly harsh, the crape myrtle may lose branches or parts of its trunk, but if the root system is protected, it will sprout new branches and keep a more shrub-like form.