As a proud Crape Myrtle owner, part of your gratification is its vibrant, long-lasting blooms in spring and summer.
However, you can continue that bloom well into the fall by trimming them back now. If your Crape Myrtle has about 15-20% bloom left, it’s time to cut it back. Cutting it back now will encourage new growth and new blooms. Crape Myrtles are fast-growing, so don’t worry about cutting too much.
The following are suggestions for to how much to trim in order to encourage new growth and bloom based on its size:
Crape Myrtle Height:
2-4’: trim berries off only
4-8’: trim 1-2’ off
10-14’: trim 4’ off
14-18’: trim 6-8’ off
We also recommend following up with fertilization after trimming in order to intensify the next round of gorgeous blooms!