Crepe Myrtle trunk chop

[PWC]

So I see a sign 70% off everything, well you can't resist that can you? Well I couldn't, bottom line is I came out with a Crepe myrtle, dwarf Pomegranate and small palmatum Senkaki for $33.

The Crepe myrtle pictured has a trunk base of just 3 cm and is nearly 2 meters tall with no low branching. My question is should I trunk chop now and how low or ground plant it to increase trunk size? My thought was to cut now then use the clip and grow method to style the tree depending on what the tree gives me to work with.

IMG_1252 (2).JPG

All suggestions and advice much appreciated.

Peter.

[melbrackstone]

It all comes down to how many big cuts you want to make. If you start training it now with a trunk chop every couple of years you should be able to get a nicer trunk with less damage showing. It'll make for a much nicer tapered trunk. Letting it grow thick for a few years will give you a good wide base, but takes many years to get it back into looking natural...My crepe myrtles are all starting to bud now after being root pruned over the past month.

[PWC]

It all comes down to how many big cuts you want to make. If you start training it now with a trunk chop every couple of years you should be able to get a nicer trunk with less damage showing. It'll make for a much nicer tapered trunk. Letting it grow thick for a few years will give you a good wide base, but takes many years to get it back into looking natural...My crepe myrtles are all starting to bud now after being root pruned over the past month.

Would it be best to wait until the new leaves harden off before the chop? I have read somewhere this would be beneficial to the overall health of the tree.

[melbrackstone]

Personally, I'd wait til the leaves have hardened off, yes. Some would chop before the leaves start appearing....everyone has their different ideas.

Waiting means you get to see where the new growth is going to come from, chopping now means the tree will probably pop new buds that it might not have otherwise popped...

[PWC]

Personally, I'd wait til the leaves have hardened off

Thank you,I will let it go for now and chop later.

[matlea]

When you do chop use the offcuts to start new trees.... crepe myrtle strike pretty easily.. more trees for free.

[shibui]

Before chopping check that your tree is not grafted.
Chopping a grafted trunk will often result in a different variety if you cut below the graft because then you are just growing the rootstock.

Not sure whether these dwarf crepes are propagated as cuttings or grafted for commercial sales.

[melbrackstone]

Before chopping check that your tree is not grafted.

Ooo, now there's a good point!

[PWC]

When you do chop use the offcuts to start new trees...

Yep I will try to layer the top section.





[/quote]

Before chopping check that your tree is not grafted.
Chopping a grafted trunk will often result in a different variety if you cut below the graft because then you are just growing the rootstock.

It is a Lagerstroemia indica x fauriei Zuni, I can see no graft union so should be good to cut anywhere. My understanding is the cut should be around one third of the overall final height of the tree.




Thanks for your advise.

[Keels]

My experience with these trees is to chop now! Preferably I would have done it afew weeks go. They are pretty hardly so doing it now won't be an issue.

[PWC]

My experience with these trees is to chop now! Preferably I would have done it afew weeks go. They are pretty hardly so doing it now won't be an issue.

I was hoping to turn one into two by layering the top, If I chop now I would lose the opportunity to get the two.

[PWC]

I have tried 3 layers, the first where I intend to chop the trunk and the other 2 just below smaller branch junctions higher up the tree. I am hoping to have 4 trees, 3 for bonsai and the other as a field tree.

I have tried 2 methods on the trunk the standard procedure of sphagnum wrapped in plastic, the others sphagnum in small pots covered in plastic. Essentially the same but with easier access to control the water content as the plastic is not completely sealed at the top.

The the 2 smaller layers are producing roots however the main one on the trunk has only got some callousing happening.

I'm not sure when to remove the smaller layers, I was thinking early autumn. As there is a reasonable amount of foliage above the layer points should I reduce them or just pot them up as is. Not to sure if the roots could support the foliage mass.

Any advice would be appreciated.

IMG_1460 (Large).JPG

[Beano]

If there’s plenty of roots, remove the layers and pot up now. At the same time, reduce the foliage mass above it. Then leave it alone until next spring. Keep it out of extreme weather - for example, today in Adelaide you could do the work. If you’re expecting very hot and dry temperatures then keep it in dappled outdoor light and out of the wind.

I say this because a crepe that size can grow from cutting, without being layered, so I would expect your layers to survive if they have a decent amount of roots.


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[PWC]

Thanks for the response Beano, I'll take one see how it goes then the other when I'm confident the first will survive.

[Beano]

If you take one now and wait for the other it might be too late to take the other later and force it into early dormancy. Then you’ll have to wait until spring to see if it survives.


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