Question
Hi Jim,

My mother has a crepe myrtle just like the ones my sister and I have. We all live on the outskirts of Columbia, SC. Crepe Myrtles are now blooming all over the place. However, my mother has had hers for many years, it looks completely healthy. She said one year it had "one" bloom, it never bloomed before or since. My sister's is blooming and all of are in full bloom. We have the same type of soil. Why is Mama's Crape Myrtle not blooming? Thank you for any help you can give me. Mama is 77 and I'm sure she would really be excited if her tree ever bloomed.

Answer
Here are the normal reasons crept myrtle does not bloom properly.

1.Not Enough Sunlight---Crapemyrtles need at least 6 to 8 hours of full sun to flower well.

2.Insufficient Water---Crapemyrtles are very drought tolerant once established, but flowering can be enhanced with irrigation during extended dry periods.

3.Heavy Nitrogen Applications---Trees that are continually fertilized with nitrogen will put on a lot of vegetative growth but may not flower as profusely

4.Low Fertility---Crapemyrtles benefit from an application of a complete fertilizer in early spring to produce enough energy for growth and flower production

5,Severe Pruning---Heavily pruned crapemyrtles will put most of their energy into regrowing limbs and leaves and less energy will go into flower production

If I were to guess I would say 1 and 4 would be the main reasons.
Really can not do much about the amount of sun now but I would fertilize with 10-10-10 fertilizer at the rate of 1 lb of fertilizer per accumulated inch of trunk diameter (if it is a multiple trunk tree add the diameters together) scattered around the tree and watered in good. Also mulch around the tree with not more than 3 inches deep of pine straw not piled up on the trunk. This will help hold moisture and add acid to the soil over time.