Add Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. I usually wait until mid-January to write something on this topic but this week I saw my first severe pruning of a crape myrtle ...

Add Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. The Spruce / Jayme Burrows Crepe myrtles, Lagerstroemia indica, vary in size from dwarf shrubs to multi-trunked and single-trunk ...

This improperly pruned crape myrtle tree has undergone “crape murder,” which is when the entire crown of the crape myrtle tree is cut off. Courtesy of Leaf & Limb, a Raleigh-based tree care company ...

When you close your eyes and think of a Southern summer garden, the first image may be an ancient live oak with low, sweeping branches, but the second image is puffs of sunset sky-colored crepe myrtle ...

Crape murder is happening all over town. It doesn’t matter how horticulturists talk about proper pruning techniques, each year more and more trees are cut back to stubs. Standard crape myrtles have ...

correctionIn an earlier version of this article, the last name of a Smithsonian Gardens arborist was incorrectly stated. He is Jacob Hendee, not Jacob Hender. The article has been corrected. Spring ...

Crepe myrtles, Lagerstroemia indica, vary in size from dwarf shrubs to multi-trunked and single-trunk trees growing to 30 feet tall. Most varieties produce beautiful blooms starting in spring or ...

Now's the time of year you're most likely to see naked crape myrtle trees, the unfortunate consequence of improper wintertime pruning. The practice has even been given a not-so-affectionate nickname: ...