Crape Myrtle Treatment Sheet
What to Expect After We Treat Your Crape Myrtle
The scale dies first. The black on the bark takes longer to go away. That is normal. This is the same sheet we hand you on the job. Print it, or keep it on your phone.
Before Treatment Day
- Show us every crape myrtle on your property, even the small ones. Scale spreads tree to tree.
Treatment Day
- One visit: we treat the soil and spray the trunk and limbs the same day.
- The soil treatment works from the inside out. The tree takes it up through its roots.
After Treatment: What You Will See
When | What you will see | What to do |
|---|---|---|
First | The scale dies. The tree still looks black for a while. | Nothing. This is normal. |
Once the scale is dead | The black sooty mold stops growing and starts to weather off the trunk, leaves, patio and car. | Optional: a light pressure wash, just enough to blow it off, not enough to damage the bark. |
By next year | Cleaner bark, clean new leaves and blooms coming back. | Enjoy a pretty tree. |
The Black Is Not the Tree
The black film is sooty mold. It grows on the sticky honeydew the scale leaves behind, not in the wood.
- Once the scale is dead, the mold has nothing to feed on and fades.
Questions
Have a question? Text us a picture at (984) 284-5399 and let us know.
Want the full explanation? Read Crepe Myrtle Bark Scale and Problems (NC).
