crepe myrtles?

[jk the sooner fan]

do any of you prune back your crepe myrtles?

i've never seen this before until this past weekend, a few folks in the neighborhood have really cut theirs back quite a bit

[Beef]

yes

[Mjcpr]

So this is the time of year to do it? I never know.

[slickdawg]

Yes, we cut them way back each year.

[slickdawg]

The time to do it is before spring, so yes, now!

[Oldnslo]

I've pruned and not pruned.

prune.

[jk the sooner fan]

well, add another chore to the weekend list......

[Beef]

I cut mine back a couple of weeks ago. God bless reciprocating saws.

[Mjcpr]

Does anyone know if a Sawz-All will work???

[slickdawg]

Does anyone know if a Sawz-All will work???

Yes, quite well.

[colleyvillesooner]

HEH

[BlondeSoonerGirl]

Hard-prune them. They only bloom on new wood - that's why everyone cuts them back. If you don't then they have to wait a bit longer before they can bloom each year.

They also look neater if you cut them back. You can train them like standards if you want to - looks nice. Like the huge ones outside the stadium...

[Beef]

Does anyone know if a Sawz-All will work???
This worked well for me.
http://img345.imageshack.us/img345/6002/dewalthdrecipsawdw303krmed1tn.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

[Jimminy Crimson]

around gardening circles, pruning crepe myrtles is referred to as 'crepe-murder'

i just cut back any suckers or crossing branches, nothing drastic

[Beef]

Hard-prune them. They only bloom on new wood - that's why everyone cuts them back. If you don't then they have to wait a bit longer before they can bloom each year.

They also look neater if you cut them back. You can train them like standards if you want to - looks nice. Like the huge ones outside the stadium...
You said new wood.

[slickdawg]

I always tell my wife that we're brutally amputating limbs. :D

[Mjcpr]

Speak english, woman. Tell us what to do......specifically.

[BlondeSoonerGirl]

http://www.floridata.com/ref/l/images/lage_in3.jpg

This one's been hard-pruned and you can see the new wood flushing.

[Sooner Born Sooner Bred]

Do you prune it the way you do mums?

[BlondeSoonerGirl]

Yep.

[OUinFLA]

yes.

[mdklatt]

Is this another manscaping thread?

[Sooner Born Sooner Bred]

So just cut back all the dead looking stuff?

[mdklatt]

So just cut back all the dead looking stuff?

:eek:

[BoogercountySooner]

Never prune ours and it comes back awesome every year!

[jps]

I pruned mine back quite a bit last year and they did great. However, there are a lot of sites I have come across that say that you shouldn't scalp them like a lot of people do, only trim them down a little bit. I think it really just depends on how you want them to look.

[afs]

my mom always would prune them and make me pick up the branches.

[jps]

Here is a good link on pruning...

http://www.crapemyrtlefarms.com/crape_myrtles.htm

[afs]

pruning is actually a safe GIS search

[sooner_born_1960]

I pruned mine plum to the ground.

[BeetDigger]

pruning is actually a safe GIS search


On the other hand, shaving is not.

[BudSooner]

On the other hand, shaving is not.

GAWD why did I look that up????:eek:

[TheHumanAlphabet]

More Crepe Myrtle info...

The Annual Crape Myrtle Massacre
http://www.950kprc.com/pages/images/crape-pruned.jpgThe Crape Myrtle Massacre is the over-pruning and wrong-season pruning of crapes all over Houston.
You've seen over-pruning ... people chop back crape myrtles to the knuckles each and every year, and new growth comes out like a "feather duster." And wrong-season pruning would mean November and December. Don't let "peer pressure" by neighbors and commercial gardening crews get to you.
Looking through all the horticultural research I could find, nowhere could I locate anything about trimming crapes in November or December. The reason is simple ... we don't have much of a winter. 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. And that new growth will be incredibly 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, say it with me: the best time to trim crapes is January through February. For years, I've suggested Valentine's Day is a great time to trim them, because at that time we're also trimming back our roses.
Now, as for how much to trim, it truly is up to you. Since crapes are so resilient, no matter how much or how little you trim really doesn't matter. From an aesthetic point of few, however, I personally don't like trimming back to the "knuckles." But you should at least trim back the expired seedpods (the dried bloom clusters) to insure better blooms in the coming year.
Here are some Web sites with trimming suggestions:
Crape Myrtle Farms (http://www.950kprc.com/pages/gardenline-crapekilling.html#)
Texas A&M (http://www.950kprc.com/pages/gardenline-crapekilling.html#)

GardenLine is heard exclusively on TALKRADIO 950 KPRC 8 a.m.-noon Saturday and Sundays.

[frankensooner]

I only do light trimming on mine. Last year after a big storm, one of the large branches on the front of our biggest CM broke. I took a wood screw and screwed it back together and then taped around the break. It flourished. Those are some amazing bushes.

[Hamhock]

my mom always would prune them and make me pick up the branches.


:eek:

[Hamhock]

I tried to get my wife to, but she says it gives her a rash.

[Mjcpr]

I only do light trimming on mine. Last year after a big storm, one of the large branches on the front of our biggest CM broke. I took a wood screw and screwed it back together and then taped around the break. It flourished. Those are some amazing bushes.

That's hard core.

Gimme the wood screws and a phillips....STAT!!!

[frankensooner]

That's hard core.

Gimme the wood screws and a phillips....STAT!!!

Momma wasn't gonna be happy if that branch died, and if momma ain't happy...

[goodonya]

We've got 5 of the beasts around the house here on the west side of Houston. They grow for about 10-months (it seems like) per year. The trunks at the ground are all over 13-inches in diameter. My boys and I have used a chain saw each year to take them down little by little over the last 10-years. We are finally down to 5-feet or so and I can now stand on the ground to prune. It takes 2-oversized and restrained pick up loads to remove the branches. Many of them are over 25-feet long. Those giant weeds kicked my butt untill I finally decided to attack with full force. They bow to me now everytime I drive by them.

[BeetDigger]

I think we need a woman's perspective regarding trimming bushes. They are noticeably absent from this thread.

[Sooner Born Sooner Bred]

Those of you who know me will know why I had trouble wording this post correctly.
I have some bushes that are against my house. I think they are yaupon hollies. How do I trim those?

[OklahomaTrombone]

Those of you who know me will know why I had trouble wording this post correctly.
I have some bushes that are against my house. I think they are yaupon hollies. How do I trim those?


That post is an atomic bomb waiting to asplode

[jk the sooner fan]

Those of you who know me will know why I had trouble wording this post correctly.
I have some bushes that are against my house. I think they are yaupon hollies. How do I trim those?

hedge trimmers

those are easy to keep level, and great bushes for where you have them

[Sooner_Bob]

now see jk, this is an interesting thread.

:D

[Jimminy Crimson]

How do I trim those?

Nair :texan:

[TopDaugIn2000]

I tried to get my wife to, but she says it gives her a rash.

not if you keep doing it