My favorite is a glossy red new growth compact variety named Summerlasting Strawberry.” For tree-form crape myrtles, choose medium or large varieties like Dynamite, Muskogee, or Natchez.

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 ...

Q: Why are the trunks of my crape myrtles turning black? They look rather unsightly. Mine aren't the only ones doing this -- many in our neighborhood look the same. Janet B. Carson, a freelance ...