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sam_md

'Don's Dwarf' Wax Myrtle

sam_md
11 years ago

For me, buying plants is like "hauling coal to Newcastle" :)
However I am vulnerable to the same whims that everyone else is subject to.
Wax Myrtle is native to my state along the southern coastal plain. It can grow to be a smallish, evergreen tree.
I read about, and saw images of 'Don's Dwarf'. I received a dozen one quart liners yesterday. I must say, not what I was expecting. I was expecting something tight and compact, not loose and straggly.
Do you have any experience with 'Don's Dwarf' Do you think that's what I have?
{{gwi:243655}}

Comments (8)

  • Dave in NoVA • N. Virginia • zone 7A
    11 years ago

    Hi Sam,
    No experience with Don's Dwarf. I grow the regular wax myrtle.

    Many plants look gangly in their 'adolescence'. I think one reason why Koehne hollies, for example, are not more popular is because they just look gangly when small sitting in the nursery. But if you ever saw a large tree, you'd wonder why in the world more people don't grow them.

    I'm sure with a good growing season or two, yours will put on lots of dense growth. I'm not sure where in Maryland you live, but you may need to protect them the first winter or two with something that will keep the snow loads from breaking them.


  • eahamel
    11 years ago

    I don't know anything about that cultivar, but those look find for rooted cuttings that size. I suspect they all look about the same until they get growing.

  • sam_md
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    ...deep the snow loads from breaking them dave-in-nova may have a good point.
    At one time the Nat'l Herb Garden had a gorgeous, informal wax myrtle hedge. I really don't know what happened, maybe snowmageddon. As you can see, they have really been hacked back, a shell of their former self.
    I'm hoping that a denser form like 'Don's Dwarf' won't have that problem.
    {{gwi:243656}}

  • sam_md
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Here we are six months later and my quart liners are now in 3 gallon containers. I'm happy with them, however still not as tight as the online pics. I think that the online images were sheared whereas this one is untouched.
    Myrica cerifera puts on a continual flush of growth throughout the season, with a very strong orange peel smell. Now lets see how they make it through the winter.
    {{gwi:243657}}

  • User
    10 years ago

    Sam,
    Boy, it looks really good.
    I like them. They grow pretty quick, or I have the regular wax myrtle, but if its anything like the species, it will look fabulous next year for you.
    I love wax myrtles.
    Good work.

  • Dave in NoVA • N. Virginia • zone 7A
    10 years ago

    Looks great Sam! If you're planning on this as a hedge, it should be easy to shear.

    Where are you located?

  • sam_md
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Am just following up on 2013 thread. I don't think that the plant in the previous pics is 'Don's Dwarf'. I know that the species is a great plant but that's not what I ordered.

    This pic looks alot like online images of Don's Dwarf which is unknown in my area. Anyone here from the Deep South that can confirm my suspicions?

  • sam_md
    Original Author
    4 years ago

    I saw these shrubs today in Salisbury MD. I suspect they are 'Don's Dwarf' wax myrtle. This is a relatively new introduction for us, does anyone know anything more about it?