When Do I Prune Crepe Myrtles in Georgia?

You can prune Crepe Myrtles any time during the late winter or early spring before growth begins, without loss of flower buds. Everywhere you prune the plant it will sprout new growth and flower.  Do not prune in early fall before the first frost. Every time you prune it forces new growth and may keep the plant from going dormant, this can also damage or kill the plant if we get a frost.   

When you prune Crepe Myrtles in Georgia, this creates new shoots that form flowers. Pruning is not necessary for flowering. Older Crepe Myrtles that that are not pruned have spectacular blooms also. Flower clusters maybe smaller on unpruned crepe myrtles, but the plant will have more clusters than a pruned one. If you remove the old flower clusters during the early summer it may allow another blooming in late summer depending on the cultivar. It is difficult to get a second bloom on cultivars that flower after July.

How much pruning and type of pruning depends on the shape and size you are looking for. Heavy pruning of older Crepe Myrtles may not be the best idea, since the tree form is aesthetically pleasing.  Pruning Crepe Myrtles in Georgia that are in the tree form make great accent plants. They have a very attractive trunk once the smaller branches are removed.

To create the tree-shaped Crepe Myrtle, select three to five trunks that grow from the ground. Remove the side branches about halfway up their height. As the plant grows taller, continue removing the lower branches so that the canopy is 4-5 feet off the ground. You will need to remove the suckers (new growth from the base and trunk of the tree) in order to maintain the tree's shape.

If you would like to keep the Crepe Myrtle, it is in shrub form.  Prune the plant back annually to approximately 6 inches above the ground. Pruning any lower will injure or kill the plant. Prune before growth begins for best result, this will give you crepe myrtle the largest amount of blooms.