Possible to prune a Natchez crepe myrtle to stay medium size?
Hi all,
Looking for some advice from folks who have experience with 'Natchez' crepe myrtles (white)!! I live in San Jose, CA (zone 9b). I have about a 12 ft diameter lateral space for a white crepe myrtle at the corner of my porch (porch/roof corner is 6 ft away for the center of the tree). After much research, I decided upon the 'Acoma' crepe myrtle due to its medium size as compared the larger Natchez (Natchez listed as 20-25' spread and height). However after calling and visiting nearly 25 wholesale and retail nurseries in my area... all had Natchez but found only one place that had 'Acoma' but upon visiting they were all in very poor shape. None of these businesses said they could source it from a local grower either :(
So... from what I see now my two options are 1) buy a 3.5gal 'Acoma' online from Monrovia and have it delivered to a local nursery or 2) buy a larger size multi-trunk 'Natchez' and attempt to stay on top of pruning it to keep it around 10-12ft laterally. I was looking for some instant tree presence so was thinking of purchasing either 15gal or 24" box size.
What would you do? To those that have experience with 'Natchez'... is there any hope that I could contain it to a 10-12ft spread? The gutter is about 11ft from the ground... so would need stay within 10-12' spread until at least that far from the ground. (the stake in the below picture shows the location of the tree).
Thank you in advance for your advice :)
Comments (13)
Embothrium
3 years ago
PROYardvaark
3 years agoAgree. I think you could do it if you pull it farther out. Then you'll need to decide if you're going to let it grow in a completely natural form, limbed up and towering over the house ... or control its size by annual topping. Here's a white crape that is not 'Natchez' but is still big. It's overall height is probably about 17' and it's canopy width probably tipping out at about 15'. Because it's topped (at 9' height), this is its size every year. The blue marks I made at its left side, starting at bottom, are height 0', 3', 6', 9'. At ground level, the trunk is about 30" in diameter. (It was a big crape that was cut to the ground. Eventually, you'd be looking at something about this size for 'Natchez.')
White crapes are pretty. But your house is light and with white trim, white flowers are not going to do that much singing and dancing in front of it. A colored flower would make a more profound statement IMHO. And there are many that are not giants. A 'Purple Magic' or 'Catawba' would look very good with your house and they're both smaller trees. I have PM and find it to grow fairly slow ... about 10" per year so far.
Kate Vasquez thanked YardvaarkRelated Discussions
Planting row of crape (crepe) myrtle trees?
Comments (11)If you can get, and keep, the crepe myrtle to a single trunk, it won't be as wide as a multi-trunked tree. The flowering branches do extend pretty far out, and can hang down/droop gracefully as the blooms open, possibly as wide as tall, but I haven't measured any big ones that were single trunk. That's why I suggested planting further from the sidewalk, so it doesn't block the walk. You could trim any branches that overhung the walkway back to the trunk, although the CM as a whole might look lop-sided. I am not sure you WANT to prune a 20 foot tree to keep it lower, unless you have access to a cherry picker, as it's rather hard to be safe that high up and reaching to prune? (if you are an aerialist, line-man, or professional arborist, then never mind) And CM's don't look good pruned shorter, IMO. Look up "crepe murder" on this forum or Google for it, and find photos of each, and you can see the differences in "murdered" treees and trees left to grow naturally. Trimming for shape is one thing, trimming for height is much harder to do and keep the tree looking natural. Try to find a CM cultivar that won't get taller than you want the ultimate height to be, and be aware that it will take some years for it to grow to that height. While I love lamb's ears, unless you get a non-flowering variety, be aware that it might not be the best for next to a public walkway. The bumble bees LOVE the flowers, and while you do have to work pretty hard to get a bumble bee to sting, it might upset the neighbors and passers-by to hear and see them buzzing happily. Not many people are aware of the differences between bb's and honey bees, and can react badly to any buzzing, bee-like insect....See MoreSingle Trunk Crape/Crepe Myrtle (7a,7b)
Comments (17)You should be able to find single trunked specimens in Huntsville. After all, that's what is used, more often than not, in the landscapes in the area. Seriously, drive around the City and you'll see thousands of Crape standards. (I'm from Huntsville.) By ALL means, visit the locally owned garden centers/nurseries to ask for what you are looking for. The big box outlets won't help you, unless they already have some already in stock. You may need to look for larger trees to find one already trained to a single trunk. Those available in the smaller container sized will most likely be untrained shrub-form. I totally disagree that single trunked specimens are unpleasing. One needs to fit the form to the site. I like both options equally well, but like to see them matched to the location. And I've never found it particularly difficult to maintain a single trunk, as long as you keep up with it when the tree is still young. It doesn't take all that long for them to cease with all of that suckering....See MoreCrepe Myrtle-Do I have to prune?
Comments (7)It really depends on which variety you have. Some get very large (>40 feet) and some stay shrubby. Many of the tree forms seem to level out about 25 feet. I stopped trimming mine about 6 or 7 years ago. I occasionally prune a few lower branches but I couldn't reach the top if I wanted to! I have 3 in my yard and they provide nice dappled shade to my garden for part of the day. Here's a photo that shows the lower part of one of the trees. This photo is a year or 2 old but gives you a good idea of how they fill out when left unpruned. This one is from 2005 and they are larger now but you can see that even without trimming, they still bloom....See Morecrepe myrtle time
Comments (108)bdeimel, if those were my trees, I'd most likely not cut anything just yet. I'd let them sprout growth wherever they were able and let that become my guide. Then later in the season when it's clear what's alive and what's dead, I'd begin removing the dead wood. Once you're down to just living wood, I'd then begin to prune for shape (much like you do any regular tree). There is an exception to cutting out the dead wood: If that wood is helping the new growth to "stand" upright instead of flopping over, then I'd leave the dead wood in place until the new growth can hold itself up without help. So, in effect, the dead branches would serve as stakes, holding up the new growth. If the tree's shape would be permanently deformed in the end, you may want to cut the entire tree back to the ground and start it over. It's a little late in the year to do that now so I'd probably wait until next year. Plus, by then, you should have a better idea of what the tree will look like with the new growth and then can make a more informed decision on whether to keep it that way or cut it down and restart it....See More
Jilly
3 years agolast modified: 3 years agomarymd7
3 years ago
PRODig Doug's Designs
3 years ago
Sara Malone Zone 9b
3 years agoKate Vasquez
3 years ago- PRO
Yardvaark
3 years ago Jj J
3 years agoHaving owned a Twilight Magic crape myrtle for exactly one whole day, I must say that I really like the dark foliage and pink flowers. Mine is budding out but not blooming. Here’s a photo of one that was in bloom at the garden center yesterday. The contrast would be pretty with your house. Sounds like it’s naturally smaller than the one you were shopping for.
Jj J
3 years ago
bengz6westmd
3 years agolast modified: 3 years ago
dbarron