Crape Myrtle Bark Scale Identification: How to Protect Your Trees This Spring

Key Points:

• Crape myrtle bark scale is an invasive, felt scale insect that feeds on crape myrtle trees, depleting them of essential nutrients.
• This scale insect causes damage as a crawler, nymph, or adult, including reduced flower blooms, branch dieback, and stunted growth. 
• Cultural and chemical management should be guided by an ISA-Certified Arborist who understands professional treatment options and Georgia and Tennessee pesticide regulations.

The crape myrtle bark scale (Acanthococcus lagerstroemiae) is the only invasive felt scale insect that infests crape myrtle trees in North America. First detected in Texas in 2004, the insect has since spread across the Southeast, most likely via the transport of infested nursery stock. Crape myrtle bark scale (CMBS) produces multiple generations per year and can feed on bark at any life stage, causing branch dieback and stunted growth. 

Atlanta’s humid, subtropical climate accelerates CMBS reproduction and extends its active period, which is why proactive tree care is so important. The ISA-Certified Arborists at AKA Tree Service provide expert tree care services to the Athens, Atlanta, and Nashville areas, including local pest and disease control. 

Below, we’ll cover how to identify crape myrtle bark scale, the damage it causes, and the best treatment and prevention methods that your local arborist can apply to keep your trees safe. 

How to Identify Crape Myrtle Bark Scale in Atlanta

Crape myrtle bark scales (CMBS) are easy to spot, not only for their unique appearance but because they are the only felt scale insect that affects crape myrtle trees. The insect goes through four life stages:

• Eggs: Adult females lay 100-300 eggs in a white or gray felt-like egg sac, known as an ovisac, according to the University of Georgia Cooperative Extension. Egg production can take place at any time between spring and fall.
• Crawlers: Eggs hatch into crawlers, which are the earliest nymphal stage, also called first instars. These mobile, pink-brown insects search for cracks and crevices on tree bark to settle into for feeding. They lose their legs and antennae as they molt into nymphs. 
• Nymphs: In the latter nymphal stage or second instar, the scales are pink or orange with varying amounts of white wax. Mature nymphs will molt into female adults or spin a white sac and molt into prepupae, then pupae, then adult males. If CMBS are in this stage in late fall, they will overwinter on bark and resume feeding in the spring. 
• Adults: Adult females are small, flat, oval-shaped insects with a white or gray waxy covering found on the bark of crape myrtles. Adult males are winged and die shortly after mating with females.

Unlike other scale species in the Southeast, such as the magnolia or fletcher scale, CMBS has multiple generations per year. While the first eggs hatch into crawlers in late April or May, the next generations can hatch throughout the summer. 

In addition to how they appear throughout their life cycles, these are other signs of an infestation: 

• White or gray waxy coating on bark that resembles dried chewing gum
• Black sooty mold on branches, the trunk, or beneath the tree’s bark
• General signs of tree decline, including stunted growth and branch dieback

The PennState Extension offers another identification method to homeowners and arborists: Crush a suspected CMBS egg sac with your fingernail. If it is CMBS, it will release a pink streak. 

Crape Myrtle Scale Damage

CMBS insects feed on tree sap, and the damage they cause ranges from aesthetic issues to significant health decline. While an infestation alone typically cannot kill a crape myrtle tree, the scales can weaken it over time and, if other threats are present, lead to tree death. 

Symptoms of damage include:

• Honeydew production that turns into sooty mold
• Reduced flowering, typically on the lower canopy
• Branch dieback
• Stunted growth, particularly noticeable in young trees

Without intervention, the black sooty mold can spread to surrounding plants and outdoor surfaces. Weakened trees may attract secondary pests and diseases—examples in the Southeastern regions include hypoxylon canker disease and the southern pine beetle. 

Why Crape Myrtles in Georgia Are at High Risk

Crape myrtles are one of the most widely planted ornamental trees in Georgia’s metro areas, lining residential streets and anchoring front yards from Decatur and Marietta to downtown Athens. Dense neighborhood plantings mean that an infestation on one tree can spread to adjacent trees within the same season, particularly during the crawler stage, when newly hatched nymphs disperse via wind, wildlife, and landscaping equipment. 

Atlanta’s urban heat island effect—when city temperatures exceed those of surrounding areas—compounds the problem. Paved surfaces, limited tree canopy, and infrastructure raise temperatures in metropolitan neighborhoods, creating conditions that can accelerate CMBS production.

Urban and suburban environments also tend to lack natural predators that keep scale populations from growing unchecked. Ladybugs, lacewing larvae, and other beneficial predators suppress CMBS but are less abundant in densely developed landscapes. This means infestations can escalate between tree-care visits, making routine monitoring by an ISA-Certified Arborist especially valuable. 

How to Manage Crape Myrtle Bark Scale This Spring

Early detection and the right treatment plan guided by an ISA-Certified Arborist can keep CMBS populations under control. Certified arborists hold a leading professional credential from the International Society of Arboriculture, demonstrating the highest level of expertise in tree care and management.

Spring is an excellent time to inspect your crape myrtle trees for early warning signs of infestation and tree damage. From there, your local arborist can provide cultural and chemical management. 

Cultural Management

Cultural management focuses on preventing pest infestations through proper tree care and routine maintenance. 

• Inspect crape myrtles carefully in spring before full leaf-out; look for white/gray waxy patches on bark and branch crotches
• Call your local arborist to prune infested branches. You can also wipe off small populations of scale by hand, but it’s still recommended to have your trees inspected to ensure they’re officially pest-free.
• In addition to addressing the CMBS infestation itself, clean any honeydew and black sooty mold before it blocks sunlight from reaching your tree’s leaves. You can do this by rinsing affected leaves and branches with a strong spray of water, or gently scrubbing surfaces with a mild soap-and-water solution. 
• Water crape myrtle trees consistently, especially during Georgia’s hot, dry summers with little rainfall.  
• Avoid putting down excessive amounts of fertilizer, which can encourage scale populations to grow. 

Chemical Management 

Professional CMBS identification is critical before any chemical management. Homeowner misidentification can lead to the wrong product being applied, wasted money, and further tree decline. The ISA-Certified Arborists at AKA Tree Service will accurately identify CMBS and recommend the most effective treatment approach, in full compliance with the Georgia Department of Agriculture and the Tennessee Department of Agriculture pesticide regulations. 

Here are the chemical treatments an arborist may use:

• Systemic insecticide: Soil-applied systemics are the most effective treatments currently available for CMBS and the easiest to apply at scale. Dinotefuran and imidacloprid are the most common active ingredients. 
• Horticultural oil and insecticidal soap sprays: Most effective when timed to crawler emergence. As noted by the Clemson Extension, the primary spray window is late April through May, with a second application targeting late-summer crawlers. These may need to be repeated, and work best as a complement to systemic treatment rather than a standalone approach.
• Bifenthrin bark spray: A bifenthrin insecticide spray mixed with horticultural oil can be applied directly to bark at peak crawler emergence, then repeated two weeks later to catch newly emerged crawlers. This treatment is best applied in the early morning or late evening to minimize exposure to pollinators. Your arborist may lightly prune before application to improve coverage and reduce pollinator exposure during bloom periods.

Choose AKA Tree Service for Pest Control and Prevention in Atlanta

If you suspect a CMBS infestation or any pest activity on your property, the best first step is to schedule a professional evaluation and pest and disease control with a licensed arborist. Some additional reasons to call:

• If you spot white, waxy patches on multiple branches or multiple crape myrtles on your property
• If your crape myrtle has shown reduced blooming, sooty mold, or branch dieback for more than one season
• If you’re unsure whether what you’re seeing is CMBS, another pest, or a fungal issue like powdery mildew

The ISA-Certified Arborists at AKA Tree Service are trained to diagnose and treat CMBS, with treatment plans tailored to local conditions across Georgia and Tennessee, including communities like Athens, Lawrenceville, Suwanee, and more. Whether you’re dealing with an active infestation or want to get ahead of CMBS before it takes hold, we offer ongoing tree healthcare plans designed to keep your landscape healthy season after season.

For CMBS treatment or prevention, or to schedule a spring tree health assessment, call 404-713-4305 or contact us online today.

FAQs

Can crape myrtle bark scale kill my tree?

Crape myrtle bark scale rarely kills trees outright, but severe or repeated infestations cause significant decline, including branch dieback, reduced flowering, and leaf drop. The honeydew it excretes feeds black sooty mold, which blocks sunlight and compounds stress on an already weakened tree. In serious cases across the Southeast, whole-plant death has been reported. Atlanta, Athens, and Nashville homeowners should contact a licensed arborist at the first sign of infestation to protect their crape myrtles before damage compounds.

When is the best time to treat crape myrtle bark scale in Atlanta?

The most effective treatment window is the crawler stage, when newly hatched nymphs are mobile and most vulnerable to horticultural oil and insecticide applications. The first crawler peak of the year, in spring to early summer, is the largest and most critical. Because CMBS produces two to three generations per year in warm climates, monitoring should continue throughout the growing season.

How much does crape myrtle bark scale treatment cost?

Treatment costs vary based on tree size, infestation severity, and method used. Soil drenches with systemic insecticides tend to be the most cost-efficient option for smaller trees, while larger or more heavily infested trees may require trunk injections or repeated spray applications. The best way to get an accurate estimate is to schedule an evaluation with a licensed arborist.

Does crape myrtle bark scale spread to other plants?

Crape myrtle bark scale strongly prefers crape myrtles, but pomegranate, American beautyberry, boxwood, and other common landscape plants are also susceptible, according to the Clemson Extension. If you have these plants on your Atlanta, Athens, or Nashville property, let your arborist know so they can be assessed during your evaluation.