Why do some people butcher the top off of Crepe Mrytles?

Question

I live in a neighborhood where many people chop their Crepe Mrytles down to short little stubs before every winter , I just think it looks so ugly, and does not look good for them, in my opinion.

I just slightly trimmed the top off of mine. (just barely in fact). IS it really better to chop them down like that?

Answer 1

It's a matter of preference. Many people wish to keep their crepe myrtles at a certain size. I have several in my yard at various heights. Triming them encourages more blooms. Many blooming bushes are cut down or back every year to enhance blooming. I have one that's huge, about 25 feet in height and others much smaller.

Answer 2

You are right it doesn't help them and it is now known it doesn't encourage any more blooms on a Crepe Myrtle. The worst thing is they are spending all that energy making them look ugly, completely ruining their natural shape. The big ones should be a small tree.

Crepe Myrtles come in all sizes from 3' tall to a small tree, it would be alot easier to pick the right ones for your needs.

This chopping them off at 5' tall seems to have been fashionable in the 50's & 60's when nearly everything seemed to have been pruned down to this height in surburbia. I notice this practice seems to be continued by older people who think it looks tidy, in my area.

No need to prune at all just take the lower stems off as it grows up (if it is a tree size plant not a shrub variety). The neighbours will get the picture and perhaps change their practices when they see how good yours will eventually look.

Answer 3

Matter of taste. Crepe Myrtle bloom on new growth, so either method works. Some are more bush like, so cutting them back makes little difference in how they will look during the summer once they grow out. Large varieties don't in my opinion, I have a number of large ones that I will just trim the tops off, and let the trunks grow up into tree form--cutting off side shoots down lower as well because the trunks look really good as they age. I have one that is about 25 ft tal, with trunks bare up to 7 or 8 ft.
I do have some dwarf varieties that do look about the same whetther trimmed back hard or not, since they only get 2-5 ft tall each year and don't mind pruning. ( I have over 30 varieties, some over 25 years old, so I do have some experience with them)

Answer 4

They are misinformed. No, it is not better to chop them off like that. Only light pruning to keep the (tree,bush?) in shape, and removing dead flower clusters will help you keep your crape myrtles healthy.

Answer 5

They are idiots. TREES should grow. These people want to top trees to keep them sizable. They are harming the tree more than doing it good.
Let your tree grow.
Crepe Myrtles are actually a bush. they are trained into a tree.

Answer 6

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Answer 7

they do this to keep them under control to keep them small and make them bush out more and they will also put on more blooms

Answer 8

if you prune the tree back, it will give out more blooms