Crape Myrtle Care at a Glance
Crape myrtles (often spelled crepe myrtle, Lagerstroemia) are popular for long summer flowers, peeling bark and good fall color. They are generally tough, but they do best when a few basics are right: plenty of sun, well-drained soil, modest feeding and restrained pruning.
- Sun: Full sun, roughly six or more hours a day, for the best flowering.
- Soil: Adaptable, but drainage matters. They tolerate a fairly wide pH range.
- Water: Regular water while young; established plants are usually fairly drought tolerant.
- Feeding: Light. Too much nitrogen tends to give leaves instead of flowers.
- Pruning: Minimal. Remove dead, crossing and weak growth rather than cutting the whole plant back.
- Hardiness: Varies by cultivar, but many are happiest in warm-summer regions. Check the plant tag for your zone.
Tree or Shrub? Choosing the Right Size
“Crape myrtle” covers plants from compact shrubs of a few feet to large multi-trunked trees. The mature size is set largely by the cultivar, not by how you prune. Nursery guides group them into compact shrubs, larger shrubs and trees. Natchez and Catawba are commonly listed among the larger tree-form types, while the Petite and Summerlasting series are sold as smaller plants.
Pick the cultivar whose listed mature height and width fits the spot. A large type squeezed into a small bed is the usual reason people end up hacking at their plants. Also look at flower color, mildew resistance and bark color, since these vary between cultivars.
Planting: Sun, Soil and Spacing
- Choose a sunny, open spot. Shade reduces flowering and can encourage powdery mildew in humid areas.
- Check drainage. Soggy soil is harder on them than average soil. A slightly raised planting area or a different site helps if water pools.
- Dig wide, not deep. The hole should be a couple of times as wide as the root ball and no deeper than it. Set the top of the root ball level with or slightly above the surrounding soil.
- Space for the mature size. Use the width on the plant tag, and keep large types well away from walls, pavement and power lines.
- Mulch, not mounds. Add a few inches of mulch, keeping it pulled back from the trunk.
Watering and Fertilizing
Water deeply and regularly through the first year or two so roots establish. After that, many crape myrtles cope with dry spells, though a deep soak during long hot, dry periods keeps them looking better. Overwatering, especially with poor drainage, is a common cause of trouble.
Most established plants need little fertilizer. If growth is weak and a soil test or local extension advice supports it, a light application of a balanced fertilizer in spring is typical. Heavy nitrogen feeding is a frequent reason for few flowers.
Do coffee grounds help? There is little solid evidence that they do. Crape myrtles do not generally need acidic soil, and used grounds are better composted than piled around the trunk. If you want to use them, add them in small amounts to a compost pile instead.
Pruning: Should You Cut Crape Myrtles Back Every Year?
No annual cutback is required. Many gardeners and extension services discourage the heavy topping known as “crape murder,” where trunks are chopped to stubs each winter. It tends to produce clusters of thin, whippy shoots that can bend under the weight of flowers, and it removes the natural shape and the attractive trunks.
Better habits:
- Prune in late winter, while dormant, if you prune at all.
- Remove dead wood, crossing branches and suckers at the base.
- Thin rather than top. Take out whole branches back to a trunk or the ground. The same approach is described in crown thinning explained.
- Raise the canopy gradually on tree forms by removing lower limbs if you want to show off the trunks.
- Choose the right size cultivar so you do not need to reduce it.
Removing spent flower clusters can sometimes prompt more blooms on some cultivars, but it is optional.
Common Problems
- Powdery mildew: A white powdery coating on leaves and buds, more likely with shade, crowding and humid, cool nights. Choose mildew-resistant cultivars, give plants sun and air, and avoid overhead watering.
- Aphids and sooty mold: Aphids excrete sticky honeydew, and black sooty mold grows on it. A strong spray of water often reduces aphids; severe cases may call for products labeled for the pest. See also why sticky stuff falls from trees.
- Crape myrtle bark scale: A newer pest in parts of the southern United States that leaves a white to gray crust on bark and often causes sooty mold. Local extension offices have the most current treatment advice for your area.
- Japanese beetles: They chew leaves and flowers in some regions.
- Leaf spot: Often cosmetic, and usually minor on established plants.
- Few or no flowers: Usually too little sun, too much nitrogen, overwatering or heavy pruning at the wrong time.
The Downsides of Crape Myrtles
Be realistic about these before planting:
- They leaf out late in spring, so they can look bare while other trees are green.
- Spent flowers, seed capsules and shedding bark create some cleanup.
- Mildew, aphids and bark scale can be recurring issues depending on cultivar and region.
- Suckers appear at the base of many types.
- They want full sun; shady yards are a poor match.
- In colder zones they may die back in hard winters, though many resprout from the roots.
- Large types need real space.
For many yards the long bloom season, bark and fall color outweigh these, especially with a well-chosen cultivar.
Winter Care
In suitable zones, crape myrtles need very little winter care. A layer of mulch over the root zone helps young plants. In marginal climates, leave pruning until late winter or early spring so you can see what has died back, and avoid late-season fertilizer that pushes tender growth.
If you are weighing other ornamental choices, our guide to the double weeping cherry covers another spring-blooming favorite, and the olive tree guide covers an evergreen option for warm climates.