How to treat for crapemyrtle bark scale

[@robbiellewis-blackwell8961]

Thank you sir! It helps to see someone actually demonstrate the steps

[@AudreyJohnston-h5g]

This was so helpful! The pace and step-by-step clarity was perfect. I was worried about my crape myrtles dying, but now I feel confident in treating them.

[@violaphlox]

Thank you so much! I just washed my tree with soap and water and it already looks 80% better. I'll be putting down the exact same pesticide you used in this video as there are no blooms on my tree yet, just some new growth. I MAY be able to save this tree 😊

[@BigJohnson1566]

Thanks for the intel my Myrtle’s have been catching heck for the last two season.

[@OlysZoo]

I believe these scale overwinter. I first noticed some black sooty mold or honeydew last year. The bark exfoliated, so I thought everything was okay. This year it is full blown. The adults look like bright white Qtip ends with spikes on them crawling around on the bark. The juvenile scales are packed just like fish scales all the way up the branches. Mine bloomed beautifully, but I treated it after the blooms faded, pruned it and am going to power wash when the wind dies down. Treat it now because your entire tree will be black, even the leaves and this will prevent photosynthesis. If you squish the crawlers, a pinkish red juice comes out. The ants, wasps and lady bugs cannot keep up with these scales.

[@Erica-ec9jt]

Very helpful!! Thank you. I had no idea what happened to my precious crepe myrtle. Very informative, easy to follow and understand. And what's so beautiful...is my crepe myrtle hasn't bloomed yet for the season. Right on time!!!

[@chelle7_myblueeyeddog]

Can you do a close up on the products? I am a visual learner. Thanks!

[@kristinloganrealtor6489]

Thanks so much for the complete explanation of treatment. Happy this is here. When I first started to see bark scale, there hadn’t been enough research.

[@davidr866]

I have one crate myrtle and I’m sure my neighbors think I’m nuts the past couple years watching me scrub my tree :)

[@stormwarning1235]

I did it. Scrubbing with steel brush works. I saved a large tree almost overnight.

[@oversizedsloth3998]

Dude I just did this and I also felt crazy but anything for our trees :)

[@nikkiandbriansones]

Lol😅 my first thought.

[@KTS_85]

I did the same to one of the crepe Myrtles behind my fence and was shocked how quick new growth came out

[@meganjohnson6601]

I have two questions about this treatment. Do we need to rinse the Soapy mixture off after applied? And, how far up the tree do we go?

[@timg6653]

Excellent job. Very helpful

[@eugeniustheodidactus8890]

I just cut them down to 1' off the ground because some experts say that the scale can infect other plants like boxwoods and privet. To bad I had to mess up these beautiful trees.

[@robbiellewis-blackwell8961]

You did what you felt was best at that point. They will grow back. It is great that you are there to help make sure that they will be OK .😊

[@lmla46]

Mine is black. We went on vacation for 2 weeks and came back and thought someone had caught fire to it, especially the base, moving up. I will wash.

[@rizzorizzo2311]

I just took a hose and put it on jet and blasted the bugs off mine. Gonna treat it with insecticide now.

[@MacSwan]

That’s what I was thinking

[@margaretshirley548]

Thank you so much for your informative video. It is excellent !! To tell you I am grateful would be an understatement!!

[@roblena7977]

So i can use dawn on dishes, baby chickens and trees now.

[@MsIndigoLoveFreeForm]

Thank you!!! Very informative.

[@QMJudy]

It's August - I didn't notice the bugs until mid July. It's a huge tree. Would a drench be appropriate in the fall, once the blooms have all dropped? I would hate to have to wait until early spring. I could wash the trunk, but there's a lot of damage being done way above my head.

[@reginadelahoussaye853]

What about the other stuff? Do you put both to treat the tree?

[@susielessard4304]

We have a beautiful young Acoma Crape Myrtle that didn’t bloom this summer. Last year, the first we had it the blooms were abundant. This year the leaves are turning a fall color but no blooms. Is it a sign of scale or black mold or maybe both?

[@lukemom2545]

Thanks for this video. I plan to cut the crepemyrtles back quite a bit and use the soil drench in the fall. Meanwhile, I ordered 1500 ladybugs in early July to help with the scale while the blooms are on the trees. The directions said to water at the base of the trees and release the insects over several evenings. Supposedly, the ladybugs would burrow into the ground and reappear two weeks later. We are now in late August and I've seen nary a ladybug. Is there still hope that they will appear, or do you have some advice for how to use them successfully? We're in Virginia, if that matters.

[@observr1]

First a disclaimer. This video was produced about 5 years ago and is still helpful for any viewers who want to use a systemic (plant absorbing) insecticide. Since making this video, however, I have retired and no longer maintain these videos with the latest information, particularly alternatives to imidacloprid. For some of the latest research information on crepe myrtle bark scale, check out this site: stopcmbs.com/ In answer to @lukemom2545's question, lady beetle releases have not, to my knowledge, been effective at controlling CMBS. On the other hand, lady beetles are one of the best natural controls for these scale, and have been seen to be very effective at controlling CMBS at some times of year. The distinction is that releasing captive lady beetles is rarely effective in managing pests because of their tendency to leave the area of release quickly (usually almost entirely within 48 hours). Naturally occurring lady beetles, on the other hand, can be very effective, given enough time. The only drawback to these native lady beetles is that they come and go in their own time and may not act quickly enough to prevent that early season shower of honeydew and formation of black sooty mold. There is research going on to see whether there are other effective biological methods for controlling the bark scale, and the best sources of that information are more recent extension publications (check the dates of publication) and the Stop CMBS website I mentioned above. The bottom line is that spending time and money on lady beetle releases is likely not going to be very helpful for these pests. Good luck with your control efforts.

[@lukemom2545]

@@observr1 Thanks for your reply and for all the information. I will check out the link.

[@Josh125125]

Hi Dr. Merchant - I happened upon this very helpful video a few years after you made it. When is the right time to apply in the spring? Should I wait until I see new growth or is it ok to apply in early spring which is now in Houston.

[@Jamie77777]

Great video, very informative! The only video I could find on how to treat bark scale on crapemyrtles..... Question - looking at my crapemyrtle tree, the bottom is bare, and the bark is completely spotted with white bark scale. The top part of the tree, with the foliage, it mainly only has scales at the base of the leaf stem/bark throughout the entire tree. I live in Oklahoma, it currently is July, with unusually hot temps, in the 100's currently. It bloomed beautifully in May/June.....at least half of the blooms have fallen off at this point..... I know you mentioned to treat in the Spring/Fall, when there are no blooms, but the scales are ridiculous, and I don't want to lose my tree to these insects! Right now, most of the blooms have fallen, do you think I could do a treatment right now before it reblooms or should I just wait until Fall when it stops blooming? Thank you kindly! 😊

[@observr1]

While treatment right now would likely be effective, the labels on soil drench treatments generally prohibit application to trees in bloom. This is to avoid harming pollinator bees. If you want to do something, you'll have to limit yourself to washing the tree down with a soft brush and bucket of soapy water. The good news is that predatory insects usually join the battle against your scales in mid- to late summer. And they are less affected by the soapy water scrub than by the injected insecticides.

[@kalisfinest805]

Thank you for the video, very informative 👌🏼

[@SallyC-d3e]

What time of year should this procedure be done?Can I do it in november in houston?

[@Olivers-G0mmer]

I remove scale with the "jet" setting on my hose-end sprayer. It has to be repeated a few times in the summer, but at least it won't kill bees and other pollinators. If I have to resort to some alcohol/soap/tea tree oil concoction, I'll do that, but I'm not touching this chemical crap. I learned my lesson with RoundUp.

[@martinahamilton411]

If this Bayer systemic insecticide stays within the tree for up to 2 years, and if the insecticide kills bees, then why say to put it around the tree early in the season or after the tree stops blooming. If it stays in the tree that long then would it not affect next year's blooms and still kill the bees? Or am I misunderstanding something?

[@observr1]

Very astute. The regulations are not exactly scientific in that regard. Fortunately, crapemyrtle is not a highly attractive tree to bees. It is wind pollinated and therefore lacks the highly attractive nectaries that bees visit for nutrition. New research suggests that some insecticide does appear to make it to the pollen, unfortunately. We are still researching whether the quantities are biologically significant, and whether bees will gather enough CM pollen to harm a colony. If we find that they do, it may affect the label instructions in the future. Pest control is sometimes balancing risks of the application versus the benefits. We continue to look for ecologically safer options, but it is a process.

[@LarryMcBride-ub5cj]

I use a pressure washer.

[@KTS_85]

That sounds like a great trick getting the soot off the leaves too cause I assume that stunts the photosynthesis

[@leenelson7290]

Great info. It strikes me the high cost of treating your trees if all must be treated once the issue is spotted. You just used a whole bottle of systemic on one tree ($15-20) but have many other trees, so do they get this treatment now as well or do you wait until there are disease signs showing up ?

[@JonKReynolds]

Where do you try the line on what branches you need to wash? Should you just do the main trunks or everywhere you see the scale?

[@Silver87sc]

So....my trees are well established and fairly large... each tree would need...2 bottles? Dang. Thank you for the video!

[@nebcfamily1]

Question... my crate myrtle had black scale. I thought we fixed it. Came back from vacation and now I have a lot of knots on the trunk of these mature crates. HELP? How do I get rid of the knots? Can these trees be saved?

[@brendatoussaint3219]

Thank you so much 😊

[@b.walker5955]

Truly appreciate the play by play. Might have seemed silly to film the scrubbing, but it was needed for this stubborn brain to actually get a visual. Thank you for that! I do have questions...does the soap need to be rinsed? And I assume since you said not to apply after a rain, it would be prudent not to apply the insecticide immediately following the scrubbing. My question is posting in the month of March and application will be in days. In my region, there is no sign of spring growth as of yet. Also we trim the tree back in the winter so currently all that is there is the sculptural trunk. There are no limbs-they will sprout from the trunks to make a tree (not a bush). It is currently only 6' in height, very matured THICK group of trunks. 2 times wider in diameter than your example. Once it begins to grow the tree will reach 13 to 15' in height. Do I use the 6' pruned trunk measure for liquid measure in treatment? Thank you! ~ this black soot scale stuff, has turned my Crepey Myrtle to that of a CREEPY Myrtle.👽

[@observr1]

Thanks for your comments and questions. Soap does not need to be rinsed. I don't believe it should matter whether you wait or not, unless you were waterlogging the ground with your soapy water, though many gardeners like to do the soap wash earlier in the season, before leaves have emerged (some soaps can burn tender new foliage), and wait until leaves emerge to apply the insecticide. That's the time we think is optimal for application. For oddball trees like yours, with big trunks and little canopy, you might need to use the instructions based on trunk diameter.

[@b.walker5955]

@@observr1 Oh thank you! If you don't mind, since my tree is a wee bit sickly, I am going to leave that "odd ball" moniker and comment between the two of us. It needs positive affirmation and that ain't it. Will measure the waist of the trunk per your advice. The leaf emergence application of treatment sounds logical. Wouldn't have thought of that one on my own. THANKS! And thank you very much for your time!

[@tookster7483]

I have black scale on my new myrtle (less than 2 years old), so cleaning the 1/4 in" trucks is not viable yet. Would the insecticide work on it own without cleaning the bark, longer healing time?

[@modrake1913]

Thank you. Very helpful.

[@jasonayoub5777]

I have white specks on the upper most branches. I listened to the video twice and he stated to wash only the trunk with soap and water. Should I also wash the smaller branches at the top of the tree that also appear infested? If someone could get back, that would be great. Thank you.

[@observr1]

For most people, washing upper branches and small twigs is not practical. Not to mention physically scrubbing small branches hard enough to dislodge scale is difficult. The washing process will not rid your tree of scales anyway but is primarily for aesthetics--making the trunks look better. While we don't recommend pruning large branches in the winter (a practice horticulturalists often refer to as "crape murder"), taking some time to prune last year's twigs with old seed heads and/or signs of scale would probably be faster and more effective at removing some scale than taking a toothbrush to those smaller branches. Restrict your pruning to branches pencil thickness or smaller and you'll keep the form of your tree and have it look nice.

[@r.johnmckay1153]

Thanks.

[@findbalancewithfood]

I just noticed we have 2 trees with a good amount of the white stuff on the limbs/branches and the leaves are turning a yellowish brownish color. Can I treat the tree now or do I have to wait until late winter? Would a neem treatment work?

[@kylebrigham7932]

These are insects that reproduce at the fastest rate. They flourished during the spring and fall.

[@OlysZoo]

Neem oil will not work. I made up a gallon in my sprayer. They have a waxy coating to protect themselves. Treat it after your blooms fade.

[@EdgarOjedaEdgarbol]

thank you

[@kayallen7603]

Can I use Sevin?

[@micahpop6656]

Great video. How about one to shoo cicadas. 😇

[@fazranafazal9618]

Can I use one bottle on my two tree

[@fazranafazal9618]

Hi Michael , can I use this method on my grape fruit and guvava plant ?

[@observr1]

Probably not. Read the label. Usually these systemics are not labeled for fruit trees.

[@fazranafazal9618]

Can I use twice a year or not ?

[@wk4240]

Have you, or your team, considered Neem Oil? This is a natural systemic insecticide. Let us know what your findings are.

[@OlysZoo]

I tried Neem Oil, NOPE. The scale use a protective waxy coating so that didnt do anything. I sprayed my entire tree. None fell off.

[@paulrichardson6854]

My moms tree is black and cover with these black scale bugs

[@tims1804]

What if you have a few 2 feet shrubs around a 12 foot tree?

[@observr1]

Nearby shrubs may indeed absorb some of the insecticide, but you should still be able to get control if you apply to the root zone of the crapemyrtle.

[@garyt2185]

Great video! Do what he says. Don't apply in bloom.

[@kellyschmitt2747]

When washing the tree, do we need to do anything with the removed white insects/larvae pouches? Is it okay if they get on the ground? Do we need to remove them by hand and kill or is just washing the bark with brush enough to scrape it off sufficient?

[@observr1]

No. Soap is pretty good at killing eggs and most of what you see is old scale covers, which are not alive. Keep in mind though, that soap scrubs are more for aesthetics than for killing the scales. We have never gotten very good scale suppression with washing--they usually come back if conditions are good for them.

[@barba9810]

What if your crape myrtle is in a shrub bed unlike the ones you are showing in the video? Mine is surrounded by azaleas, liriope, and flowers. How does this change the treatment and dousing of the ground?

[@MuscleCarsAreSexy]

Sounds like you have a pretty yard. I would still treat as he did in the video. All the plants would probably benefit from the treatment.

[@observr1]

The label does not require a change in dose. Although you are correct, these plants may also take up some of the insecticide, the small amounts involved should not affect the treatment. Many of the trees we treat in our research are similarly surrounded by ground cover.

[@chesterpresley3659]

Is this safe for my 9 month puppy?

[@ClemFandango950]

What time frame would you expect to see results in?

[@observr1]

Because the scale insect don't slough off immediately after dying, and because the black sooty mold sticks around awhile, you probably won't see dramatic results on your tree; but scale death is actually pretty fast--a week or two in most cases. You can speed up the improvement in the looks of your tree by washing the trunk with soapy water and a soft bristled brush.

[@ClemFandango950]

@@observr1 that's great news! Thanks for following up, I appreciate it

[@ChristopherPisz]

What are organic options to treat this? These bugs have spread from my crape myrtles to my vegetables and onto my flower bed, throughout the entire yard. Even if I pull all the infested plants and burn them, the damn things seem to live in the soil waiting for me to plant again. They are literally sucking the life out of every living thing on my property.

[@observr1]

These insects are highly host specific, and are only known to feed on crapemyrtle and American beautyberry in the US. If you have problems with insects on other plants, they are not related to what you are seeing on your crapes. Organic options are limited to washing trunks with soapy water and a soft-bristled brush, and waiting for ladybeetles to move in.

[@mildredlacayo6150]

I need the name off the insecticide

[@OlysZoo]

Watch the video. He speaks it and shows it printed. Bayer Advanced tree and shrub.

[@chesterpresley3659]

Is this safe for my 9 month old puppy?

[@observr1]

Imidacloprid is an insecticide and like any insecticide can be harmful with high enough exposure. But to give some context, imidacloprid is used as an on-animal treatment (Advantage) for flea and tick control. Keep the puppy away from the treated soil till it is dry and you and puppy should be fine. Mulch with clean mulch after treatment if you want to reduce any potential exposure even more.

[@LLWW]

Why not use horticultural or dormant oil?

[@willbryant9297]

This question is dope. It is so much better then the expensive ass chemicals I have tried in the past. But you are limited by the temps if you are going to spray it. For instance it’s active ingredient is mineral oil, so plants that get dripped on after that treatment may be cooked. I had this happen in July after not having success with imadiclorpid and Zylam

[@willbryant9297]

Oh also it works by smothering the insects so they cannot breathe. The other two insecticides are systemic and the plant will absorb this chemical and give protection for a few more weeks to get the new that just weren’t coated previously. You can also power wash some of them off.

[@OlysZoo]

Because it does not work.

[@justinebecker2380]

Is there anything i can use while my Crape Myrtle is in bloom?

[@observr1]

We have looked at contact insecticides like soaps and oils, but these products do not seem to provide any significant control. There are some other foliar applied insecticides (buprofezine, pyriproxyfen and Flupyradifurone) that appear to be effective and can be used safely during bloom, however these are not readily available to consumers. You can try scrubbing trees with soapy water solution and just wait for the lady beetles to come to the rescue. Next spring, then, use one of the soil applied products March to early May.

[@mandysanders8724]

I'm rather surprised to see TAMU promoting systemic insecticides considering the high risk to pollinators and potential bioaccumulation in birds and other animals that eat these pollonators. What about less toxic treatments like neem oil?

[@zgcb0a]

This video was made a few years ago before the bans occurred. And the impact is still in question. But if applied only when not in bloom, the impact is greatly reduced. Neem oil is also useful but only when not in bloom. Power washing the trees usually works well enough

[@OlysZoo]

NEEM oil did not work.

[@heatherlysmile5733]

18 trees to scrub 😅

[@pauljohnson7486]

20 crepe myrtles at $35 per bottles of insecticide is $700 ... I guess they'll be staying black

[@OlysZoo]

I feel your pain. I am just treating mine so that it doesnt spread to the neighbors and the other ones I have. This could become very serious. I am in So. Carolina.

[@jobiet]

it's $20 on Amazon

[@mikesentell942]

Thank you