Crape myrtles are commonly attacked by crape myrtle aphids. This often leads to a black fungus, called sooty mold, forming on leaves and branches in mid- to late summer. Control these insects by ...

Garden columnist Dan Gill answers readers' questions each week. To send a question, email Gill at gnogardening@agcenter.lsu.edu. My problem is with black stuff on my crape myrtles' leaves and bark. It ...

Q: My husband made sure I read your column telling us never to top our crape myrtles. However, ours had aphids last summer, stopped growing and looks terrible. Short of digging it up, can we not just ...

DEAR NEIL: My husband made sure I read your column telling us never to top our crape myrtles. However, ours had aphids last summer, stopped growing and looks terrible. Short of digging it up, can we ...

Garden columnist Dan Gill answers readers' questions each week. To send a question, email Gill at dgill@agcenter.lsu.edu. About a year ago, we redid our flowerbeds and added three crape myrtle trees.

My "Tonto" crape myrtles stay covered with aphids and black mildew. I've tried every product available, and none keeps the aphids away for more than two weeks. The trees are close to our house, which ...

Crape myrtles have been a beautiful low maintenance choice for Mississippi landscapes for many years. Their cinnamon colored bark and brightly colored blooms have made them very popular. Crape myrtle ...

Contributed by Neil Sperry Rescuegrass is a cool-season invader that can be prevented with herbicides applied in early September to prevent seeds from germinating. (Photo: Picasa) Dear Neil: My ...

I enjoy living n a heavily wooded area; that's why I oppose over-pruning of any tree. Sure, we do need to prune trees if they are in a urban setting and they are a danger to power lines, but we have a ...

Crepe myrtles, Lagerstroemia indica, vary in size from dwarf shrubs to multi-trunked and single-trunk trees growing to 30 feet tall. Most varieties produce beautiful blooms starting in spring or ...