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Crape Myrtle for Maryland #885254

Asked September 14, 2024, 2:30 PM EDT

Good afternoon. Can you suggest a resource which would help me choose a hot pink crape myrtle which would stay below 6 feet tall and have very good disease resistance? Thanks so much

Harford County Maryland

Expert Response

We don't have a list or single resource compiling all of the variety sizes, colors, and disease resistance rankings, as there are well over 100 crapemyrtle cultivars on the market today. Those developed a few decades ago by the U.S. National Arboretum were introduced for better cold-hardiness and powdery mildew resistance (they have Native American tribe names, like 'Choctaw', 'Natchez', 'Pocomoke', etc.), but so many introductions have occurred since then from other breeders that we don't know if everyone is still trying to incorporate powdery mildew resistance into their varieties. At least one other leaf spot disease can also afflict crapemyrtle, and there might not be notable resistance to that among many varieties. Information accompanying new variety introductions at trade shows and in plant catalogs seldom mentions any disease resistance, whether it is a feature of the variety or not.

For an intense pink color and a mature size in the range of about 6 feet or less, options include the varieties below, which is not an exhaustive list. We'll note disease resistance when we have that information, which is not the case for most varieties.
  • 'Bellini Raspberry'
  • 'Berry Dazzle'
  • 'Chickasaw' (not a very intense pink, and stays very short, but we include it because at least we know it's highly mildew-resistant and is a National Arboretum introduction)
  • 'Coral Magic' (supposedly good disease resistance, but slightly taller than you wanted, at 6-10 feet at maturity)
  • 'Dazzle Me Pink' (should have good mildew resistance)
  • 'Enduring Summer Fuchsia'
  • 'Hopi' (National Arboretum introduction; slightly taller than you wanted at 5-10 feet at maturity)
  • 'Infinitini Brite Pink'
  • 'Pecos' (National Arboretum introduction; slightly taller than you wanted at 6-8 feet at maturity)
  • 'Pink Ruffles'
  • 'Pink Velour' (high mildew resistance, but reaches about 8-12' tall)
  • 'Pocomoke' (stays very short; National Arboretum introduction)
  • 'Sweetheart Dazzle' (good mildew resistance)
Miri

Many thanks!


On Mon, Sep 16, 2024, 9:22 AM Ask Extension <<personal data hidden>> wrote:
The Question Asker Replied September 16, 2024, 9:25 AM EDT

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