It doesn’t matter how horticulturists talk about proper pruning techniques, each year more and more trees are cut back to ...

I usually wait until mid-January to write something on this topic but this week I saw my first severe pruning of a crape myrtle for this dormant season earlier this month. So, instead of visions ...

Crape myrtles should be pruned during the winter. Many people prune in late winter, from late February into early March. The ...

Honeydew, a sugary excrement, can be seen on bark and leaves Sooty mold can follow honeydew and turn bark and leaves black and gray (Figure 2). It is not a pathogen but will discolor plants Crape ...

First detected in the U.S. in Dallas in 2004, crape myrtle bark scale is a sucking insect that feeds on the sap of plants. It ...

Because of this, pruning spring-flowering plants after June risks removing the buds, resulting in fewer flowers the following ...

Dear Neil: Regarding crape myrtle bark scale — Southeastern Virginia has been battling this pest for years. The scale itself will not kill the plants. However, the sooty mold is the real problem.

Dear Neil: Is there an effective treatment for crape myrtle bark scale? It’s not as bad as it was a few years ago, but I’d like to eliminate it. As insects in Texas go, this is a comparative ...