Impressive Crape Myrtles Result From Pruning

Q: I have a crape myrtle in my back yard that is about 60 years old. It consists of five or six trunks 4-6 inches in diameter. It is healthy but doesn’t seem to be blooming these days. I want to prune it and maybe cut all but one or two trunks. How far back should I prune it? 

A: If you prune a crape myrtle severely, as you describe, you’ll have dozens of sprouts come up from its roots each year. I wouldn’t remove any trunks; instead remove all small limbs on the lower third of the tree. Then take out crossing branches and eliminate those that grow through the middle.

Think about the structure of the plant. I’ve seen some very impressive crape myrtles that resulted from pruning this way. Crape myrtles bloom on new growth so do your pruning in late winter or early spring. For more information, visit bit.ly/GAcrape.