Red Crape Myrtle Live Plants – 5 Bare Root Lagerstroemia Indica Rubra, 12-18″ Tall

Overview

Transform your garden with our exquisite red crape myrtle bare root plants. This offering includes 5 individual bare root plants of Lagerstroemia Indica ‘Rubra’, each measuring 12-18 inches in height, ready for planting. The crape myrtle is a beloved deciduous small tree or shrub renowned for its spectacular, long-lasting floral displays and dynamic seasonal foliage. Known for providing brilliant color throughout the summer months, these plants are a fantastic addition to any landscape design, whether you’re creating a vibrant border, a striking focal point, or a beautiful privacy screen. Its robust nature and stunning visual appeal make it a popular choice for gardeners seeking both beauty and resilience.

The red crape myrtle bare root variety is particularly prized for its rich, fiery red blooms that cover the plant in profusion. Beyond its summer floral show, this plant offers multi-season interest. In spring, the leaves emerge with a charming bronze hue, maturing to a lush, verdant green for summer. As autumn arrives, the foliage undergoes another breathtaking transformation, turning into brilliant reds and yellows, ensuring your garden remains a spectacle of color well into the cooler months. These plants are shipped bareroot, a cost-effective and efficient way to establish strong, healthy specimens in your garden.

Key Benefits

Investing in crape myrtle plants brings numerous advantages to your outdoor space, offering more than just seasonal beauty:

• Extended Bloom Period: Enjoy a continuous display of vibrant red flowers from early summer through fall, providing color when many other plants have finished blooming. The rich red hues are truly captivating and draw the eye.
• Multi-Seasonal Interest: From bronze spring leaves to verdant summer foliage, followed by brilliant red and yellow fall colors, these plants offer year-round visual appeal. This dynamic change keeps your garden interesting in every season.
• Drought Tolerance: Once established, Lagerstroemia Indica ‘Rubra’ is remarkably tolerant of drought conditions, making it an excellent choice for water-wise gardening and reducing the need for constant irrigation.
• Versatile Landscape Use: Its adaptable size, growing 8-16 feet tall with a 6-8 foot spread, allows it to be used as a small ornamental tree, a large shrub, or even in mass plantings for dramatic effect.
• Attracts Pollinators: The abundant flowers are a magnet for bees, butterflies, and other beneficial pollinators, contributing to a healthy garden ecosystem.
• Low Maintenance: These crape myrtle plants are generally easy to care for, requiring minimal pruning to maintain shape and encourage blooming, and are relatively pest and disease resistant.
• Fast Growing: Crape myrtles are known for their relatively fast growth rate, allowing you to establish a mature-looking landscape in a shorter amount of time.

Plant Care & Growing Tips

Caring for your red crape myrtle bare root plants is straightforward, ensuring they establish well and provide years of beautiful blooms. For optimal growth, plant your crape myrtle in a location that receives full sun, meaning at least 6-8 hours of direct sunlight per day. Adequate sunlight is crucial for prolific flowering and strong, healthy growth. While they tolerate some partial shade, flowering will be significantly reduced. These plants thrive in USDA Hardiness Zones 6-10, making them suitable for a wide range of climates across the US.

When it comes to soil, crape myrtle care involves well-draining soil. They are not particular about soil type but prefer a slightly acidic to neutral pH. Heavy clay soils should be amended with organic matter like compost or aged manure to improve drainage. For bare root plants, ensure the planting hole is wide enough to spread the roots without bending. Water thoroughly after planting and keep the soil consistently moist, but not waterlogged, during the first growing season to help establish a strong root system. Once established, they are quite drought-tolerant, but occasional deep watering during prolonged dry spells will benefit them.

Fertilize your crape myrtle in early spring with a balanced, slow-release granular fertilizer formulated for flowering shrubs. Avoid high-nitrogen fertilizers, which can promote leafy growth at the expense of flowers. Pruning is best done in late winter or early spring before new growth begins. Remove any dead, damaged, or crossing branches. You can also thin out the interior branches to improve air circulation and shape the plant. For best results with your red flowering shrubs, ensure good air circulation to prevent powdery mildew, a common fungal issue that can affect crape myrtles, especially in humid conditions. Choosing a resistant variety like ‘Rubra’ also helps.

Size & Details

This offering includes 5 individual red crape myrtle bare root plants, each measuring 12-18 inches in height upon arrival. These bare root specimens are ready for immediate planting and will quickly establish themselves in your garden. At maturity, these crape myrtle plants typically reach a height of 8-16 feet with a spread of 6-8 feet, forming a beautiful, multi-stemmed small tree or large shrub. The growth rate is moderate to fast, allowing you to enjoy a substantial plant within a few years.

The plants are shipped in a dormant, bare root state, which is ideal for transplanting and promotes robust root development once planted. With proper care, you can expect these crape myrtles to begin flowering in their first or second growing season. The deciduous nature of the plant means it will lose its leaves in winter, preparing for a spectacular spring resurgence. The mature size makes it suitable for various landscape applications, from creating a vibrant hedge to serving as a standalone specimen tree.

Frequently Asked Questions

• Q: How big do these crape myrtle plants get? A: These crape myrtle plants typically grow to a mature height of 8-16 feet with a spread of 6-8 feet, forming a beautiful small tree or large shrub. Their size makes them versatile for various landscape designs.
• Q: Is this an indoor or outdoor plant? A: This red crape myrtle bare root variety is an outdoor plant, best suited for garden landscapes. It thrives in USDA Hardiness Zones 6-10 and requires full sun exposure to flourish.
• Q: How much sunlight does it need? A: To ensure abundant flowering and healthy growth, these crape myrtles require full sun, meaning at least 6-8 hours of direct sunlight per day. Less sun can result in fewer blooms.
• Q: Is this plant easy to care for? A: Yes, crape myrtle care is generally considered easy. Once established, they are quite drought-tolerant and require minimal maintenance, mostly consisting of annual pruning and occasional fertilization.
• Q: What condition will the plants arrive in? A: The plants will arrive as 12-18 inch bare root specimens. This means they will not have soil on their roots and will be dormant, ready for planting to establish a strong root system.
• Q: When is the best time to plant these crape myrtles? A: The best time to plant bare root crape myrtles is in early spring, after the last frost, or in late fall before the ground freezes. This allows the roots to establish before extreme temperatures.
• Q: Will these red flowering shrubs survive winter in my zone? A: These crape myrtles are hardy in USDA Zones 6-10. If you are within these zones, they should survive winter well. In Zone 6, some winter protection might be beneficial for young plants.
• Q: What kind of soil is best for Lagerstroemia Indica ‘Rubra’? A: These plants prefer well-draining soil. While not overly particular about soil type, amending heavy clay soils with organic matter will improve drainage and overall plant health.
• Q: How long until it blooms? A: With proper care, you can expect your red crape myrtle bare root plants to begin producing their vibrant red blooms in their first or second growing season after planting.
• Q: What are the main benefits of planting a crape myrtle? A: Main benefits include an extended bloom period, stunning multi-seasonal foliage, drought tolerance once established, versatility in landscape design, and attracting pollinators to your garden.