Brigette Polmar · Gardenality Seed · Zone 8A · 10° to 15° F
Thanks, Brooks! I've been avoiding the ladder myself!

Brent Wilson · Gardenality Administrator · Zone 8A · 10° to 15° F
This is a good question. For the first time ever, had I not been late last year pruning two of the crape myrtles in my yard, I might not could answer this question. If your crapes are just barely leafing out, I'd say it would be okay to do the heavier type pruning shown in my article "How To Prune A Crape Myrtle" on this website. If they are mature, established specimens, like Brooks said, you don't have to prune them at all. It won't hurt to not prune them. The one's I pruned last year in my yard are about 12 feet or so tall, and now fairly mature trees with full canopies, so I didn't prune them this year. I did remove a few suckers that had grown from the base and a few stray branches here and there that would have spoiled the shape of the canopy this year. You can do this light pruning any time of year. I agree with ya'll, when a crape myrtle gets so tall that you need a tall ladder to prune it, it's best to leave the canopy alone...only removing suckers and lower branches.