Crepe myrtles, Lagerstroemia indica, vary in size from dwarf shrubs to multi-trunked and single-trunk trees growing to 30 feet tall. Most varieties produce beautiful blooms starting in spring or ...

I usually wait until mid-January to write something on this topic but this week I saw my first severe pruning of a crape myrtle for this dormant season earlier this month. So, instead of visions of ...

Now’s the time of year you’re most likely to see naked crape myrtle trees, the unfortunate consequence of improper wintertime pruning. The practice has even been given a not-so-affectionate nickname: ...

Over the past couple of weeks, fellow gardeners have asked that I explain how to prune crepe myrtles, as I often complain (to anyone that will listen) about neighbors following neighbors' poor pruning ...

Somehow, the belief that crape myrtles should be brutally pruned by cutting off their tops persists, even though it's inaccurate. Crape murder is a term that has been coined to describe this severe ...

Mid- to late-winter provides an excellent opportunity to prune a variety of plants in the landscape. Plants that can be pruned now include most hedges, shrubs and shade trees, and summer-flowering ...

Sometimes young crape myrtles are cut back to make them look fuller. Young trees often appear more spindly and less substantial, but this is a matter of age, not something that needs to be corrected ...