Wax myrtle can withstand heavy pruning easily and can grow several feet each year. It is easiest to begin to shape a wax myrtle into a tree form when the specimen is young and within a few years of planting. To do this, the plants branches should be tied in towards the center, and a circle of hardware cloth can be placed around the outside. About Northern Bayberry Trees Prefers sandy soils, tolerates all but the wettest areas. Its average texture blends into the landscape, but can be balanced by one or two finer or coarser trees or shrubs for an effective composition. In order for you to see this page as it is meant to appear, we ask that you please re-enable your Javascript! Rabbits can do a great deal of damage to this plant in the winter. Its size varies. You can recognize old stems by their rough looking bark and their thickness. Cut back 1/3 of the old stems to the ground each year until all that is left is the new young growth that emerges from the base. medium growth rate. maturing at up to 10' tall by 10' wide, but often pruned or sheared into a smaller size. ft. of bed area. Monitor the wax myrtle throughout the growing season for disease, injury and concentrated insect activity. While not a true honeysuckle ( Lonicera spp. This North American coastal native exhibits quiet beauty and an easy-going habit. Prepping the seeds from a small harvest of bayberries from city source. It grows to a height of 6 to 10 feet and 10 to 15 feet wide. If this portion of the shrub is crowded with branches, divide this type of pruning over two or three winters. This series of publications is the result of a five-year research project that evaluated the adaptability of a variety of native trees and shrubs to the stresses of urban and residential landscapes in Maine. The flowers appear in early summer and last through summer, and the foliage occasionally exhibits bright red fall color. By fertilizing young shrubs you can increase both the size and the amount of flowers on the plant. Granular, liquid or stake type fertilizers can be used. Granular types should be worked into the soil around the plant at a rate of 2 pounds or 2 pints per 100 square feet of planting bed. An alternative way is to drill or punch 6″ deep holes at the drip line of the plant. Poured into these holes should be a total of 1/4 pound of fertilizer per foot of height or spread of the shrub (divided up and poured evenly between all of the holes). These holes should not be filled with more than 1/3 of the fertilizer and then they should be top filled with soil. This method of fertilization should only be done once a year, and is best done in late fall after leaf drop, or in early spring before bud break. due to poor collar formation, or the wood itself is weak and tends to break Have not had luck with dwarf cultivars. As a general rule, cut off no more than about a third of each stem, and do not make a cut so low that it is within a leafless portion of the stem. Myrica pensylvanica, the northern bayberry, is a species of Myrica native to eastern North America, from Newfoundland west to Ontario and Ohio, and south to North Carolina.It is also classified as Morella pensylvanica.. Myrica pensylvanica is a deciduous shrub growing to 4.5 m tall. It grows to 10 feet tall, and spreads slowly to form colonies with glossy, semi-evergreen aromatic leaves. How to Trim Lilac, Rose of Sharon and Forsythia Bushes, How to Prune a White Hydrangea Paniculata Kyushu, University of Florida IFAS Extension, Lee County: Wax Myrtle, Clemson University Cooperative Extension Service: Wax Myrtle, University of Georgia College of Agricultural & Environmental Sciences: Pruning Ornamental Plants in the Landscape, Clemson University Cooperative Extension Service: Pruning Shrubs, North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service: Pruning Basics. Back branches in the landscape disease, injury and concentrated insect activity an excellent choice for re-naturalization slowly! ) ; flowers on old wood the pruned plant material in your compost bin is,. ( northern bayberry, candle-berry is the best landscape services and customer experience in southeastern.!, division of the branch to be cut ) from Newfoundland to North America where it is possible prune... Often forming colonies by suckering wire but with small square holes ) feel free to back... 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