PlantFiles: Dwarf Wax Myrtle, Southern Bayberry
Morella cerifera

I garden mainly for wildlife. I wanted something I could plant along a chain link fence at the front of my house. Previous owner had Chineses privet and they were out of control. I purchased 15 of the Morella (Myrica) cerifera 'Don's Dwarf,' They are exactly what I wanted for that area. They were planted about five feet apart. Don's dwarf has formed a dense hedge hiding the fence but not overwhelming. I do not like clipped hedges. I prefer a natural look. These fit the bill. They are nicely shaped and require no maintenance. They are approximately five feet in height and width but still growing. They are said to grow 4-6 feet high and wide. Most of all the birds enjoy them.

Just an awesome, bulletproof, small-to-medium tree for the entire Southeast. It's often thought of as a boring native forest shrub, so has little cachet value around here. It has a beautifully contorted, Olive Tree-esque (or dwarf Live Oak-esque) appearance when mature, though some people give it the topiary treatment for some unfathomable reason or another. I used to turn my nose up at this tree, not for its non-rarity, but rather for the slight orangey color at the tips of its new leaves. I dunno why, but this has always put me off for some reason. Maybe it's just mild chlorosis (iron deficiency)? I finally decided to get one after learning that the big multi-trunked stunner of a tree in the yard of my parents' neighbors in New Orleans is a Wax Myrtle. I had assumed it was some sort of big smooth-leaved holly, I guess. The owner told me he dug it up as a baby in a forest in Abita 30 years ago; it is now about 20 feet tall and 15 feet wide, planted only a few feet from their house's foundation. (He's an electrician/contractor, but apparently is not worried about it doing any damage to the foundation.)

I bought a 3-gallon baby in September at Banting's, having demurred on a drool-inducing 15-gallon behemoth with three fat, elegant trunks. The next day I went back and swapped my baby ($15) for the big boy ($90), and planted it that same day in brutal 95º heat. I have not regretted the swap for a second. After planting it (in full sun), I was disconcerted to see more than half of its leaves drop over the next few months. However, the very outer leaves didn't drop, telling me the tree was simply shedding interior leaves in order to regrow new ones to take advantage of the new light availability. Watering it more than I would water most newly-planted trees also seemed to help it a lot. It has handled several recent 25º nights beautifully, and continues to put out new leaves in the winter. This is one tough species all around, and to top it all off, it is awarded the highest hurricane survivability rating (> 80% survival rate) from LSU Ag Center.

Yes, you can probably dig a Wax Myrtle up out of the swampy forests around here, but (much like with Bald Cypresses) I find it actually quite hard to find babies. What you normally find are big ones that have sent up pups (root shoots) to form a sort of thicket, though the thicket does not extend for more than a few yards in either direction. Just buy a nice specimen tree and you, as well as the birds and reptiles in your neighborhood, will thank me.

I have 3 large (12-20') wax myrtles in my yard and the birds love them. Each tree has at least 1 bird's nest, sometimes more. The birds also seem to love the seeds so it's a home with a built in food supply.

An excellent landscape shrub or small tree. I have used them as entry plantings instead of the overused and harsher hollies. Collect seeds as soon as ripe in early-mid autumn. Remove waxy coating and plant in coldframes. Seeds will benefit from several weeks of cold stratification.
Wax myrtles have a wonderful lavender-like fragrance when rubbed or brushed, and make excellent specimens when allowed to develop into a small tree. I have some between 15-20 ft. on my farm, and they develop great branching character as they mature.

The Wax Myrtle is deer resistant, heat and drought tolerant, and grows freely in poor soil. The woody stem shapes can be as interesting as the trimmed foliage. Seeds are small and aromatic; new seedlings emerge beneath established plants. And if you're lucky, the plants are native to your area.

The wax myrtle responds well to pruning, has attractive evergreen foliage and is a fast grower. The berries are a food source for birds in the winter. It repels insects, (particularly fleas); was often planted around southern homes to keep the fleas out. A sprig in a closet or drawer will keep out cockroaches.