Question
I have about 20 crape myrtle in our backyard.Something that looks like 'spiderwebs' is covering a lot of them.It is almost sticky feeling when you touch it and it is killing the foliage as it covers it.I have looked on webs sites and nothing that Ive seen looks like this stuff.It looks like some kind of bug infestation, but I don't seen any obvious bugs.Can you help? We live in Moore, Oklahoma.

Answer
Since it is sticky it sounds like a cottony aphid. These are small soft bodied insects that suck the plant juices from the plant and secrete a sugary substance called honeydew which is sticky. The cottony aphid also produces a waxy white material that can cover the leaves and stems. You will need to spray the leaves and stems with a systemic insecticide. One that will work well is Orthene. You will need to spray the complete surface of the leaves and repeat again in about 10 days. Another choice would be a product called Bayer Advanced Tree and Shrub insect control. This is added to the soil around the trees and the roots will take it to the leaves and when the aphids suck the juices they are killed. It is a little more expensive than the spray but depending on the size of the trees sometimes the spray can not be gotten up to the foliage.
Here is a web link to the Bayer product. You should be able to get these products at any local nursery/garden type store.

http://www.bayeradvanced.com/product/Tree-Shrub-Insect-Control/concentrate.html