I reside a 2 miles from the beach in Oxnard, CA, July of 06 I purchased a 24? box multi-trunk Tuscarora crepe myrtle and had my gardner plant it in my front yard-a small square plot-no grass, just mulched with bark. I had him bury 2 perforated pvc pipes parallel wtihe tree for deep, infrequent watering. It was in bloom when purchased and continued to do so thru September. Winter came, leaves dropped and all seemed fine. SPring arrived and leaves formed and appeared normal-glossy and green but quickly developed a red edging. They seemed a little small to me and some what scallop-edged. No blooms developed at all last year. No branches were dying-when cut, it was green on the inside. I tried fertilizing it twice w/blood meal-no luck. Now, it’s mid-April and leaves have formed and look very healty. So, any suggestions as to why it did not bloom last summer/fall? Thanks

You are describing what is typically called transplant shock. Your plants bloomed the first year because they were already in that stage of development from the growing nursery. You planted and took care to be sure they were watered. During that first season in your yard, the plants put all their energy into establishing a new root system at the expense of producing flower buds. The smaller leaves with a red margin are also characteristic of of plants that have not fully recovered yet. Once your plants have fully recovered, they again will bloom as you would expect.