Dwarf Wax Myrtle, Southern Bayberry

On May 1, 2015, peachmcd from Durham, NC wrote:

This truly is an effortless and beautiful native for my area (Durham NC); however, I wanted to mention what is not part of the description of the most common cultivar, 'Don's Dwarf': it is a male clone, so there will be no berries.

I plan to move mine out of its current location to make room for a female dwarf wax myrtle if I can locate one. Meanwhile, it is a nice plant, and the minor pruning (to keep it under 5ft)) gives me natural roach repellent to use around the house.

On May 21, 2013, h9kr4jg8ir5 from Spring, TX wrote:

(Administrator: please remove the word "dwarf" from the name of this plant.) I had read that Wax Myrtles need lots of sunlight. So I didn't try to grow any until I had some sunny spots. I finally planted 20 bare-root seedlings this past winter and about 80% have survived in their first 6 months, which I'm very pleased with. A few are surviving in shade although not growing very rapidly. Several are doing well in very swampy soil. The ones in the sunny spots seem to be growing rapidly, or at least compared to Yaupon Holly. I think Wax Myrtles look beautiful and I wish I had planted more sooner. The only downside is that you probably can't plant them in a shady woodland garden. They seem to be perfect for planting in sunny areas along driveways and house foundations where there isn'... read moret enough room to plant tall trees.

On Jan 5, 2011, Fires_in_motion from Vacherie, LA (Zone 9a) wrote:

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 s... read moreort 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.

On Sep 3, 2004, growtexas1 from Henderson, TX wrote:

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.

On Aug 4, 2002, bleu wrote:

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.