Don't overdo it when pruning crape myrtle

Augustans are in the habit of cutting back crape myrtles far too severely this time of year.

It's so bad that we call it "crape murdered!"

This term was coined because nothing is left but large, gnarly knobs or "fists" at the top of each trunk.

I am not sure how this practice got started, but I have an idea why it did.

Since crape myrtles bloom on new wood, the idea was that the more they are pruned each winter, the more growth will occur, resulting in more blooms.

But crape myrtles bloom just fine without pruning, and are healthier.

Why, other than looks, is crape murder, or topping, such a bad thing?

First, topping causes profuse growth at the site of the pruning and increases susceptibility to disease and insects. It encourages growth that is too dense to allow air movement and light to reach the inner branches.

Although topping may result in larger blooms, flowers will grow on thinner, weaker branches. Every summer, I get numerous phone calls and e-mails from people asking why the branches on their crape myrtles are breaking. This happens a lot when we have afternoon showers for several days in a row. These spindly branches just cannot support the weight of all that foliage and blooms.

Topping may also shorten the life of your plants.

To properly prune crape myrtles, use the following techniques:

- Remove suckers from the bottom of the plant.

- Remove crossed, damaged, or diseased branches. For crossed branches, remove the weaker of the two limbs that are crossing or rubbing.

- Thin out small, twiggy growth to allow air to better circulate in the canopy.

If you need to rehabilitate a crape myrtle, here's what you should do:

The first method is to decide how many main trunks you want to keep. Most people like multistemed plants, so you might keep two to five of the strongest ones. Go ahead and prune them back pretty much like they have always been except this time, cut just below those gnarly knobs. They will basically look like they have in previous winters, except the knobs are gone.

This spring, you will get a heavy flush of sprouts just below your pruning cut. After you let the sprouts grow a few inches, pinch them all off except one. It's probably better if you keep a sprout that is on the outside of the trunk to help the plant spread out more.

The one sprout you keep will eventually become your new trunk or leader. As the summer goes along, you will continue to get new sprouts below your pruning cut. Keep them pinched off.

You will be amazed, after just one growing season, how well the new leaders blend with the old trunks. Now you will be on your way to having a natural-looking small tree.

If you don't let your crape myrtles grow because they are so close to your house, you can still prune them back to give them a more natural appearance.

Cut back the plant to within 1 to 2 inches of the ground. After two to three weeks of growth in the spring, select two to five of the most vigorous shoots on each trunk and remove all others. Remove any new shoots that emerge later.

Assuming they need cutting back every year to keep them in bounds, just cut them back to one or two inches from the ground each year. If you can let them grow a little larger, prune the limbs back to where they join another branch and not at the same place each year. This will prevent them from developing those knobs.

If you have a case where the crape myrtles are planted too close to the house and must be pruned back each year, you might consider replacing them. Crape myrtles vary from dwarf (3 to 5 feet), to midsize (5 to 10 feet) to small trees (10 to 20 feet). They also will come in any color you would want.

Sid Mullis is the director of the University of Georgia extension service office for Richmond County. Call him at (706) 821-2349, or send e-mail to smullis@uga.edu.