My Shivering Baby Crepe Myrtle (grow, containers, crape, myrtles)

[kmalone4]

In my usual hustle and bustle of life, I forgot to take in my 3 poor baby crepe myrtles (currently container kept). The poor things were out in 20 degree weather.

Have I done them permanent damage? Is there anything I can do to "make it up to them?" They are very small, around 2 feet tall~ although they can grow quite tall if I decide to plant them in the ground. (Not dwarf).

What do you think?

[unclejake21]

The only way to tell if anything has happened to them is to wait. I'm sure they should be fine as long as there isn't another night like that again.

[Bulldogdad]

20 degrees. No problem as long as they were already dormant.

[JQ Public]

Unless they were tropical kinds I think you'll be fine. They grow in NC and just lose their leaves in the winter. Great fall color actually, and they sprout back from the same point in the spring. They bloom the whole summer almost into the majority of September.

[BLUEDIAMOND64]

In NC just had 2 planted and they still look dormant.

[kmalone4]

Thanks and reps, guys. I'll keep my fingers crossed.

[italianotampa]

I've seen em planted on the New Jersey shore......theyre pretty hardy.

[IngleDave]

Take your fingernail and scratch one of the stems. It should be green underneath and be fine. Crapes usually sprout after the weather has warmed considerably, usually much later than other things, so be patient with them; you'll know soon enough.

[Thoris]

You won't really know until April or May. The finger nail test on the cambium layer won't work until after they completely fail or show signs of recovery. My big concern is that they were still in containers. Even hardy plants can suffer terminal damage if the root ball freezes solid. Best advice for future is to make sure you heel-in (bury) your semi-tender containerized shrubs well before frost. Good luck.