How To Prune A Crape Myrtle - Gardening Tips & Advice

***Scroll below to see crape myrtle pruning diagram

By: Brent Wilson - Wilson Bros Nursery

When it comes to pruning crape myrtles, it would be better to leave them alone than to prune them improperly. We've all seen over-pruning - people chop back crape myrtles below the knuckles each and every year.

When a crape myrtle is pruned back too far it has two effects:

1. Reduces the number of blooms that will be produced during summer.
2. New branches will grow far too long and therefore not be able to support the weight of heavy blooms - particularly when wet. These long branches weep over and often break off during heavy rains.

When a crape myrtle is pruned properly:

1. It will produce twice the number of branches and therefore twice the number blooms as it did during the previous year.
2. The new branches will be strong enough to support blooms.

The Time To Prune Crape Myrtles

Wrong-season pruning would mean November and December. Don't let "peer pressure" by neighbors and commercial gardening crews get to you. If you trim the crapes in the last two months of the year, and we get a warming trend in January or February, the trees might actually start putting on new growth. That new growth will be highly susceptible to freezing weather should it come on the heals of a warm spell. New growth will also tend to draw the cold right into the plant, causing needless damage to a tree that should be resting in dormancy.

So, the best time to trim crapes in is late winter or early spring - just prior to new growth emerging. For years, we've suggested this as a great time to trim them, because at that time we're also trimming back our roses and many other plants and trees.

Other Crape Myrtle Pruning Tips

1. For older established crape myrtles that have developed a nice mature canopy and form, pruning is not necessary. What is older? Maybe over 10 years in age.
2. Sharp hand pruners work fine for pruning younger crape myrtles with branch diameters of 1/2" or less. For larger specimens lopping shears or a pruning saw may be necessary.
3. Suckers that grow from the base of the trunk of a crape myrtle tree can be removed any time of year.

via wilsonbrosnursery.com

Great information on pruning Crape Myrtle Trees. Winter or early spring is the best time to prune according to most all gardeners I have researched. Most people prune in the Fall and that leaves potential new growth subject to freezing!

Posted via web from Royce's posterous