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crepe myrtle dig

Posted: July 1st, 2020, 9:37 pm
by nozila
Hi all,
These are crepe myrtle correct? I've getting all these on the weekend for a good price - I think. Any tips to successfully transplant them? Do they need heaps of roots + soil?
Thanks in advance,
D

Re: crepe myrtle dig

Posted: July 1st, 2020, 9:55 pm
by greg27
They look more like murraya than crepe myrtle to me. Still good for bonsai though. I'm not sure about transplanting but I think they're fairly tough.

Re: crepe myrtle dig

Posted: July 1st, 2020, 9:59 pm
by terryb
Agree. Most of the crepe myrtles around my way have lost all their leaves. The bark doesn't look right either.

Re: crepe myrtle dig

Posted: July 1st, 2020, 10:04 pm
by nozila
thanks guys. I think you might be right - seems to be an evergreen. if it is a murraya - orange jasmine, there roots are a royal pain in the bum as I have them for my hedging at the front. that said, I got the hedging for free and only 1 of 5 survived.

Re: crepe myrtle dig

Posted: July 1st, 2020, 10:05 pm
by nozila
Here's my dead hedge as a reference. BTW should I just bonsai the 1 surviving murraya?

Re: crepe myrtle dig

Posted: July 1st, 2020, 10:21 pm
by Keels
This is my crepe myrtle tree last summer. You can see it has smooth bark and more roundish leaves.

If those trees your digging are evergreen, digging in winter wont be ideal. If you have to then get as many roots as you can along with leaves etc to ensure a better survival rate.

Good luck :tu:

Re: crepe myrtle dig

Posted: July 1st, 2020, 10:52 pm
by kcpoole
These are definitely Murraya,
Well worth digging as keeping as a larger Bonsai
There is a mini variety too which is a lot slower but better for small trees.

They are hardy and transplant easily with a normal amount of roots.
Cut off any long thick ones and keep the small feeders

Ken

Re: crepe myrtle dig

Posted: July 1st, 2020, 11:21 pm
by nozila
Thanks all, lets just hope I have better luck with these surviving as oppose to my first attempt at digging murraya's as evident by my hedging pic.

Re: crepe myrtle dig

Posted: July 4th, 2020, 1:43 pm
by nozila
so I got the murrayas out. Also got 2 freebies - a crypt Myrtle (she actually did have one) and an apricot stump (would have been a tree but trunk was too long). any idea where I should cut the branches on the murrayas and could the apricot stump eventuate into a pre bonsai?
Image
Image


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Re: crepe myrtle dig

Posted: July 4th, 2020, 2:37 pm
by Keep Calm and Ramify
nozila wrote: July 4th, 2020, 1:43 pm so I got the murrayas out. Also got 2 freebies - a crypt Myrtle (she actually did have one) and an apricot stump (would have been a tree but trunk was too long). any idea where I should cut the branches on the murrayas and could the apricot stump eventuate into a pre bonsai?
Image
Image


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...i'm struggling to see a crepe myrtle here?

Re: crepe myrtle dig

Posted: July 4th, 2020, 3:28 pm
by nozila
Bottom right, it’s been chopped down to a stick


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Re: crepe myrtle dig

Posted: July 4th, 2020, 3:29 pm
by nozila
Also, can I place these in water until I can get some containers for them? Or can I just leave them out in the elements with roots exposed?


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Re: crepe myrtle dig

Posted: July 4th, 2020, 8:31 pm
by shibui
Soak in water for up to couple of days or cover the roots with something damp. You will see bare root trees and roses at nurseries this time of year with the roots buried in damp sawdust or something similar.
I often just dig a hole in the garden, shove the roots in and backfill with soil. No need to be elaborate, just as long as the roots are not exposed to sun or wind should keep them happy for a few weeks or even months this time of year. Air pockets no problem.
That is called 'heeling in'
here are some of the trident maples I have dug out of the grow beds.
IMGP8375.JPG
They will stay there like that until they are potted up or replanted in September.

Some trident maple seedlings bundled up in bunches of 100 waiting for a buyer.
IMGP8376.JPG

Re: crepe myrtle dig

Posted: July 4th, 2020, 8:42 pm
by nozila
Awesome, thanks. I ended up finding space in the garden bed to slot some in and the others I placed in garbage bags with holes in the bottom inside milk crates.


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Re: crepe myrtle dig

Posted: July 4th, 2020, 8:44 pm
by nozila
shibui wrote:Soak in water for up to couple of days or cover the roots with something damp. You will see bare root trees and roses at nurseries this time of year with the roots buried in damp sawdust or something similar.
I often just dig a hole in the garden, shove the roots in and backfill with soil. No need to be elaborate, just as long as the roots are not exposed to sun or wind should keep them happy for a few weeks or even months this time of year. Air pockets no problem.
That is called 'heeling in'
here are some of the trident maples I have dug out of the grow beds.
IMGP8375.JPG
They will stay there like that until they are potted up or replanted in September.

Some trident maple seedlings bundled up in bunches of 100 waiting for a buyer.
IMGP8376.JPG
Loving those tridents


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