I will be in the process of burlap-wrapping and staking around my crape myrtles here in northern New Jersey and was wondering if someone could tell me if I could actually cover the trees/shrubs with covers ("Plankets" etc.) for the entire winter? I have not gotten a confident response from anyone regarding this matter. Some have told me that it's ok to cover the crapes entirely and others tell me that I shouldn't cover them because they will need sunlight although dormant. Any help would be appreciated. My plan was to stake around the crapes (varying in sizes from dwarf shrubs to about 5 foot trees right now), burlapping around the stakes, dropping pine needle and then covering over the top of the stakes with the blankets. Thanks.

Mike