How to Prune Crepe Myrtles to Grow Tall
Crepe myrtle (sometimes spelled "crape myrtle") trees, or Lagerstroemia, are summer-flowering, producing a wide range of vibrantly colored blooms, depending on the exact species. Properly pruning crepe myrtle trees isn't necessarily difficult or complicated, but many people don't know how to prune crepe myrtles so that they grow tall and healthy. If you use the right pruning technique, you'll see that your crepe myrtle tree will gain exponential height every year and double its branches and blooms. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
-
-
1
Prune your crepe myrtles in late winter or early spring, right before new growth begins. Be sure to use clean, sharpened pruning shears.
-
2
Look for the seedpods at the very top of the branches. Follow the stem down from the seedpod to where the stem meets the branch.
-
-
3
Cut the stem using sharp, clean pruning shears about six inches above the point where the stem and branch meet. Repeat this process for all of the stems containing seedpods.
-
4
Prune away all the suckers that have grown from the crepe myrtle's trunk base and the twiggy growth along the main trunks and branches.
-
1
Tips & Warnings
As an alternative method, you can bend the top stem gently and make your pruning cut at the point where the stem begins to bend.
Pruning is not necessary for mature crepe myrtle trees that are more than 10 years old and have well-developed canopies.
Avoid pruning your crepe myrtles in November and December. Doing so would leave your trees susceptible to killing new growth that could emerge during a January or February thaw.
