a crape surprise, trachy growth, and other yard stuff

12 years ago

Four years ago, I bought two crape shrubs that never put out buds or bloomed. Not that it's lighting up with buds, but look what I saw today. I hope this is a good sign for next season. Do crape shrubs not bloom when young?

I was looking through old photos and was really surprised when I noticed the growth on my trachy in just 14 months (June 2010 vs Aug 2011). Look at the base of the palm.

Is there anything that softens a container or wall like sweet potato vines? Once they get established, they grow like weeds!

Early June

Mid-September (after trimming it twice)

{{gwi:1162555}}

Thanks for looking.

Comments (4)

chadec7a
12 years ago
Nice growth on that trachy its looking good. Pruning crapes back in early Feb. will help them bloom. Since they like to bloom on new growth.
User
12 years ago
Crape Myrtles bloom magnificently even when quite tiny. How much sun is your Crape Myrtle getting (more the better)? Perhaps ease off on the fertilizing and watering.
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tropicalzone7
12 years ago
My crape is still pretty young and even though the bloom season isn't as long as older crapes, it does bloom well. Crapes do bloom longer when older though, so I think you have many blooms to look forward to! How is the sun in that area?
Your trachy looks great! Its getting very nice and fat!
-Alex
islandbreeze
12 years ago
Nice trachy growth. Not sure on crapes, but it looks like they're a decent size, so they should be blooming. You're right about sweet potato vines, definitely surprised me with their vigor. This is my first year, and I had to dig them out of the planters I had them in because they were taking over. I planted them in a separate planter by themselves, and they look great. I have the type like your green variety, but in the dark purple color. Definitely will plant these again.