Miniature Crape Myrtle not doing well

I planted two miniature crape myrtles (Orchid Cascade) in the flower beds in front of my house. Both plants were maIl order and looked good upon arrival -- both had buds and one was starting to bloom. I opened them immediately and followed directions to put them in dappled shade for a day or so and water them. Then I planted and followed instructions to water every day for 7 days then every other day for 7 days then as needed (zone 7 here and it has been very hot and humid). They get at least 6 hours of sun each day. Since planting neither plant has thrived. In fact they appear to be very slowly drying up and I am afraid they will die. No blooms and buds appear to have dried up. I monitor soil moisture. What is wrong and what can I do to save them?

If the blooms or buds haven't dried out, it doesn't sound like it's dying...did you just plant them? They are probably just becomming acclimated, sounds like your doing everything right.

The dwarf crape myrtle take awhile to get established in my garden (Razzle Dazzle series), but I've not lost any. Once established, they have performed well. As a general rule, crape myrtle require minimal fertilizer and not much water. If anything, I would only be concerned about overwatering them. I think they will serve you well, and you will really appreciate their minimal needs, the older you get. I love the plant.

The best thing you can do for any plant that is just getting established (besides annuals) is cut the buds and blooms off. What you want/need is root growth and sometimes you have to point them in the right direction. Last year, our nursery had lots of problems with 'Orchid Cascade' coming in looking great but not having any roots on them. Most of the ones we sold were returned to us dead. This year we made sure they were well-rooted as soon as they arrived. If yours don't make it you may want to consider buying them in person from a local nursery.

Thank you all! They are getting worse. Soon will be all bare twigs. I am about yo give up hope.

Pictures of the plant still might help. Also, have you tried using root stimulator yet? It's fairly cheap and might give them the kick in the butt they need.

Don't give up, yet. It may surprise you. My transplant from earlier this year looked almost dead, hardly a leaf on it. But, I kept giving it TLC and plenty of water (though not too much). It is full of leaves now and even getting ready to bloom (thanks to the last 2 weeks of rain we've had). You may have to prune off some dead grow at the top of the plant for appearance, but give it a couple of months before giving up completely. As long as it has a good root system to begin with, crepe myrtles are very resilient.