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I used to commit "crape murder" every year because I thought that's what you were supposed to do. I stopped cutting them for 2 years in a row, and I let them grow taller and wider. I thought they looked so much better being left alone to grow. I ended up moving into a new house with 6 small ones, and I'll leave them all alone.
There is a house nearby that has two crape myrtles side-by-side that must be decades old with little to no trimming. It is a huge umbrella as tall as the one story house's roof, and you could park a few cars under it. They have a swing under it.
I wish the previous owner of our house would have done some trimming.
We bought the house in March of 2012, and I noticed a soft stump in the middle of the front lawn. I thought maybe a tree/bush went down in a previous severe ice storm.
A couple months after living here , I asked the neighbor.
He said that the tree had gotten so tall it was touching power lines. He told the guy to trim it back to 6-8 ft tall and all would be ok.
the guy came out with a chainsaw and cut the entire tree down level to the ground.
Last year I ended up planting a small bush nearby ( but not under the power lines)
People love to talk about "crepe murder" but I was only talking about "trimming" and "training" just like you do with every trees you have in your yard, especially with young trees.
Enjoy your crepe myrtle. They are beautiful trees.
I want a specimen tree in my front yard, so I'm thinking of a tall crape myrtle. At a rest area in NC, there is a spectacular grove of tall crape myrtles that form a canopy over the picnic tables. They are much too tall to ever be pruned, so I know it isn't necessary.
I want a specimen tree in my front yard, so I'm thinking of a tall crape myrtle. At a rest area in NC, there is a spectacular grove of tall crape myrtles that form a canopy over the picnic tables. They are much too tall to ever be pruned, so I know it isn't necessary.
Is that rest area along I-95? There are also some spectacular ones around some of the old buildings out in the country with trunks maybe almost a foot in diameter. Those old buildings are a great place to see 100+ year old trees.
I have just been paying attention to all the dormant Crape Myrtles around Hilton Head, since I am debating on whether to plant a nice specimen crape myrtle or a redbud. I thought the crape myrtle was too ubiquitous, but I'm starting to rethink it.
I would go with a clump of 4-5 trunks, and not prune it. The ones in the landscapes I've been seeing have lovely mottled trunks and have been allowed to grow in their natural pleasing shape.
I have just been paying attention to all the dormant Crape Myrtles around Hilton Head, since I am debating on whether to plant a nice specimen crape myrtle or a redbud. I thought the crape myrtle was too ubiquitous, but I'm starting to rethink it.
I would go with a clump of 4-5 trunks, and not prune it. The ones in the landscapes I've been seeing have lovely mottled trunks and have been allowed to grow in their natural pleasing shape.
Gentlehearts, I have 3 Crepe Myrtles and 2 Redbuds. Both are beautiful trees and fit right in our zones. IMO, you can not go wrong with either choice. I have one of my redbuds at right - front corner of the House and in the Spring when it blooms it is a sight to behold. Its large leaves also soften the angular corner of the house. I enjoy seeing it everyday as I turn into my street coming home.
My 2 crepe myrtles are planted on the west side of my house. They are ~3yrs old and 7-8 feet tall. They will get to 12 - 15 feet tall and will provide shade for the afternoon sun. One gives bright red flower when it blooms (Dynamite is the name, I think), and the other pink (Miami, I think). They will grow A LOT of branches, many come from the root, and tiny hair-like side braches alone bigger trunks. So some prunnings are inevitable if you want a healthy tree with only 4-5 main trunks, as well as providing sunlight & air movements to the middle of the tree. But that is true for ALL trees. What I think you don't want to do is chop back on the height it will grow. In that case, choose your variety carefully as some can grow upward to over 30 feet (Nanchetz, I think) and some are dwarf (my 3rd one is a dwarf) that will only grow to one foot tall.
Gentlehearts, I have 3 Crepe Myrtles and 2 Redbuds. Both are beautiful trees and fit right in our zones. IMO, you can not go wrong with either choice. I have one of my redbuds at right - front corner of the House and in the Spring when it blooms it is a sight to behold. Its large leaves also soften the angular corner of the house. I enjoy seeing it everyday as I turn into my street coming home.
My 2 crepe myrtles are planted on the west side of my house. They are ~3yrs old and 7-8 feet tall. They will get to 12 - 15 feet tall and will provide shade for the afternoon sun. One gives bright red flower when it blooms (Dynamite is the name, I think), and the other pink (Miami, I think). They will grow A LOT of branches, many come from the root, and tiny hair-like side braches alone bigger trunks. So some prunnings are inevitable if you want a healthy tree with only 4-5 main trunks, as well as providing sunlight & air movements to the middle of the tree. But that is true for ALL trees. What I think you don't want to do is chop back on the height it will grow. In that case, choose your variety carefully as some can grow upward to over 30 feet (Nanchetz, I think) and some are dwarf (my 3rd one is a dwarf) that will only grow to one foot tall.
The research I did on Crepe Myrtles stated there was no difference between a crepe myrtle tree and a crepe myrtle bush.
It stated a tree is a bush that never was trimmed.
The research I did on Crepe Myrtles stated there was no difference between a crepe myrtle tree and a crepe myrtle bush.
It stated a tree is a bush that never was trimmed.
Apparently, you have observed otherwise.
I've made no such observation.
In fact, I did not try to differentiate between a "bush" vs. a "tree". I simply called them "crepe myrtle" and use the word "tree" collectively to describe them.
I prune all my trees including redbuds, magnolia, maple, japanese maple, crepe myrtle and fruit trees. I don't "chop" them, but I "prune" them. There is a difference.
The research I did on Crepe Myrtles stated there was no difference between a crepe myrtle tree and a crepe myrtle bush.
It stated a tree is a bush that never was trimmed.
Apparently, you have observed otherwise.
There are different varieties that have different growth patterns. A dwarf variety will never be twenty feet tall. I guess you could prune a dwarf into a "tree" shape, but it will always be a really small tree. On the other hand, you can take a variety that left alone might be quite tall and keep it pruned to a shorter height if you wish.
I think most landscape experts just suggest that you not lop off all the small branches back close to the trunk.
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