Crepe Myrtle Newbie help!

Natasha3393

Seedling
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Hi, thank you for reading.
My father purchased me a Crepe Myrtle (Lagerstroemia Indica) specimen tree grow kit from Bonsai Box for my birthday as this was my grandmother's favorite plant20180719_182501.jpg.
I live in Massachusetts and my zone is 6b.

The instruction were extremely detailed which i am thankful for. My issue is after planting seeds as instructed I have four 3 inch sprouts after 10 days. The instructions said "after seeds sprout(in about 35-45days) remove plastic wrap and place in warm area out of direct light. Select healthiest seedling and gently remove others. Leave remaining seedlings grow in the box provided."

My question is this : as it's only been 10 days do I remove plastic wrap, place in morning sun spot and do as they say by removing the weaker sprouts?

Also is it common for this species to grow super fast as mine has?

The tallest sprout is right against the wall of grow box which is concerning as well if i am to leave in grow box. I know how fragile these are so I want to do this right.

Any help is appreciated!
Ty,
natasha the crepe myrtle noob
 

cbroad

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Welcome to the forum!

Really, if the seedlings are getting any amount of direct sun while the plastic wrap is on, there's a good chance they'll get cooked under there, if out of direct light, they shouldn't get fried while it's on. Without the plastic on, I'd give them as much light as possible, but make sure the soil doesn't completely dry out.

You could leave them all in there for the rest of the year, it'll just be harder separating them the longer they're in there.

Also is it common for this species to grow super fast as mine has?
Oh yeah!!!
 

cbroad

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If it was me, I'd take the plastic off now and give them some decent light, maybe not all day sun, but at least 4-5 hours of direct light, maybe from early morning to about 12 or 1 (maybe more, but I don't want you to fry your seedlings).

And I'd probably not remove the weakest ones cause I'm cheap :eek: I'd let mother nature cull the heard for me :p
 

Natasha3393

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Welcome to the forum!

Really, if the seedlings are getting any amount of direct sun while the plastic wrap is on, there's a good chance they'll get cooked under there, if out of direct light, they shouldn't get fried while it's on. Without the plastic on, I'd give them as much light as possible, but make sure the soil doesn't completely dry out.

You could leave them all in there for the rest of the year, it'll just be harder separating them the longer they're in there.


Oh yeah!!!

Ty for the quick reply! I've kept them OUT of direct sunlight during these 10 days as no, I do not want to fry these cuties. :)

Ok, so just to be clear, take plastic off and remove weaker seedlings if I choose? OR, leave plastic on, out of sunlight and removed seedlings at another time? Haha. Sorry being a bit of a pain I know.
 

Natasha3393

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Ty, do you think the tallest one growing against the wall of box is to be a issue or nah, let nature be? :)
 

atlarsenal

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Crapes grow very fast. I would leave them as you have them for another week. You may still have a few more come up. Then thin them out to just 2 or 3 seedlings. It’s hard to tell how big your pot is but you don’t want them within an inch of each other or they will be competing for nutrients and both will suffer. When they get up to 6-8 inches you can separate they into individual pots.
 

cbroad

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do you think the tallest one growing against the wall of box is to be a issue or nah, let nature be
Will these be for bonsai? If so, any natural movement will add interest to the tree, some people put screens on top of their seedlings to encourage them to twist and turn looking for the light.
 

Natasha3393

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Crapes grow very fast. I would leave them as you have them for another week. You may still have a few more come up. Then thin them out to just 2 or 3 seedlings. It’s hard to tell how big your pot is but you don’t want them within an inch of each other or they will be competing for nutrients and both will suffer. When they get up to 6-8 inches you can separate they into individual pots.

Thank you! This box is roughly 6x6x10. The seeds were so small when I planted I fear a few were put too close, instructions didn't say I'd need tweezers ?. Tbh, I thought maybe they were weeds or something because they sprouted so soon haha.

I do think I see a few new sprouts pushing through as well so yes maybe i will leave another week to see.
 

Natasha3393

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Will these be for bonsai? If so, any natural movement will add interest to the tree, some people put screens on top of their seedlings to encourage them to twist and turn looking for the light.

Ok again I am total noob here lol. Yes? Crepe Myrtle Bonsai is what I'm told by the pamphlet included. I just know I may be over my head here.
 

atlarsenal

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Making them bonsai is up to you as they grow by using bonsai techniques. They don’t know to grow up and be bonsai. Your in the right place to learn. Use the search function and study the forum. :)
 

atlarsenal

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Check the bottom of this thread also. Greg has added similar threads feature.
 

Natasha3393

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Making them bonsai is up to you as they grow by using bonsai techniques. They don’t know to grow up and be bonsai. Your in the right place to learn. Use the search function and study the forum. :)

Ty. Would you suggest any books for beginners? Seems I have a ton to learn. This is exciting though. I'm eager to see what with hard work and effort I can create ?
 

Cypress187

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Welcome to the forum! Put your climate-zone in your profile for future advice.
 
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