I‘ll Have the Crapes, Hold the Honeydew

When you got your crape myrtles you probably didn’t expect them to come with a side of honeydew, so what do you do now? Crape Myrtle Bark Scale has been a troubling infestation over the last couple years, damaging our trees and causing a terrible mess in the surrounding area. The patio furniture, cars, decks, and all our favorite places to sit in our outdoor settings are part of the fallout, covered in a gross sticky mess. What do we do next and are they ever going away?

Richmond is doing its best to treat this pest and True Timber has even started a plant health care effort to help combat it. You may still be weighing your options, to treat your tree or consider other alternatives. Treatments are ideal in June to eliminate a couple generations of CMBS at once. You can treat the trees at any time as long as they are not when they are not in flower and it will at least kill off the current generation of scale. This will help reduce the infestation and get you a step in the direction of getting the problem under control, but you may be ready to have the problem completely resolved another way.

Crape Myrtles are pretty trees but they are non-native to Richmond. There are many native trees that might be worth considering for a replacement tree, taking down the crape myrtle and installing a native species that benefits the wildlife and local ecology. I’m a fan of planting Dogwoods and Redbuds in the small yards in the city, but when you space can handle a large tree you can consider Red Maple, or Service Berry. Though it will eventually grow to a very large tree, you could consider to plant a  White Oak that supports up to 600 different species of wildlife. It would be a legacy tree to plant something the future generations can enjoy.

What do you do with the mess left behind the crape? You can use a soft bristle brush with dish soap to scrub the black sooty mold off the tree trunks, though with enough time the tree will eventually shed the bark. You could also consider using a power washer to scrub driveways, patios and lawn furniture, avoiding the use of harsh chemicals that could seep into the root system of the tree. If your car is covered with the honeydew and sooty mold, you should clean it immediately to not allow it to settle and get caked on. This could ruin the clear coat on your vehicle and also ruin your opinion of ever wanting to own a crape myrtle ever again.

So you decided to keep your Crape Myrtle after a bad CMBS infestation and that’s okay, there are a few steps to take. You can consider using a treatment you can find online or on a store shelf nearby, but keep in mind the rate of success is much lower when you’re not using a professional. If you find yourself frustrated with the process you can always reach out for help from your friendly neighborhood arborist, as we’re always happy to be of service!