Large Crepe Myrtle

[ReDirtBonsa1]

(I think if we want red, we need to buy it when it's flowering.)

Or maybe to get the Red one, you have to buy the White one.

[Beano]

Definitely pink! Still nice. I don’t care for the flowers much anyway...

[melbrackstone]

yup, definitely PINK! oh welll

[Keep Calm and Ramify]

Solid little trunk on that one Beano.

[Beano]

It looks pretty different to when I bought it. It was much taller and had many primary branches. I shortened them a lot and have reduced the number to 3, but the 3rd large main branch originates slightly higher up so once the new secondary branches fill out it shouldn’t look weird. Perhaps I’ve taken away the natural “crepe” look by doing this, but I’m happy with it. The canopy is densing up now and it’s hard to see what I’ve got without breaking new growth off accidentally so I’ll get rid of the flowers (I had removed all the other buds but this one weeks ago) and wait until it goes dormant to see what skeleton I have developed since getting the tree.

[Keep Calm and Ramify]

I've got two very similar to yours Beano with straight sturdy trunks. Old nursery stock plants. I've been cutting back constantly sacrificing the flowers in order to ramify more. They seem to love it & shoot back quickly. Scars also heal really quick.
I must admit I love the early movement in Mel B's tree trunk here though

[Beano]

Yes they are great trees. I’ve deliberately left some small green bud extensions below a big side scar so it doesn’t die back on one side and the edges started rolling over after only 5 days. I wanted mine to flower because in the next few years I want to put it in a glazed pot and it’ll need to match.

I got one from PeterB that is a little thicker and has peeling bark! It’s a yamadori.

Sorry I’ve hijacked the thread a bit...

[melbrackstone]

no worries, I'm happy to see what everyone is doing with their CMs.

I've given mine quite a severe chop, it's pretty much just the bend in the trunk. I had completely lost heart with all the dead straight bits, they were too thick, and made the tree too tall....

Will see if there's any dieback from the chops before sharing pics, I think....lol.

[Keep Calm and Ramify]

no worries, I'm happy to see what everyone is doing with their CMs.

Hijacker #2 back to report - Multi trunk specimen in the making.
All it's leaves fried off from those really hot summer days we had here recently, but it still managed to flower nonetheless.
Way too tall ATM, but as you all know, you gotta let'm do their thing if you want to see the pretties.

It's a white one!

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[melbrackstone]

It's a white one!

[melbrackstone]

Some major work on this tree!

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[MJL]

As they say in the comic books: "Holy sh!t Batman" insect graphics ... POW! Bang! BOOF

Major work there - well played Mel ... planning for a better future and what's life without a bot of hope.

[melbrackstone]

lol, thanks Mark, I think I'm finally starting to "see" the trees in my plants.

Did Robin ever actually say "Holy shari, Batman" in the comics?

[melbrackstone]

Progression for this year. This trunk seems to have grown amazingly, despite having so much of the top cut off. Today I did a little bit of cleaning of excess growth, but left it to flower. I'll do some more shaping in March next year.

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[Keep Calm and Ramify]

Looking better with each update Mel. Flowering already! New pot's colour a nice choice