NATCHEZ — In just a few short months, the streets of the Miss-Lou will be alive with color from the bountiful crape myrtles that decorate the area.

And to make sure the color is all it can be, it is time to bundle up and head outdoors to prune those blooming beauties.

But don’t just go out and grab some loppers and start cutting. Pruning a crape myrtle the right way may not be what is most often seen.

Master gardener Joanne King said the proper way to trim and shape a crape myrtle is not to just cut off the top but instead to carefully trim away branches and limbs that may impede healthy growth.

“You can’t just top them off and leave them,” King said. “You need to let them grow all the way up and be tall and graceful.”

She wasn’t sure how the improper technique got started but guessed it could just be a product of habit.

“It’s is like when you are cooking a piece of meat and you cut off a piece because your mom did, and she did it because her mother did it that way.” King said. “(It’s like) when you go back and ask your grandmother why she cut it that way and she says her pan was too small.”

To achieve the long graceful look that is ideal for crape myrtles, King said there are only a few basic rules to follow.

The first is where to actually make the cut on the branch. King said to make all cuts at the collar of a stem, the spot where the stem meets its main branch.

“If you cut it back to the main trunk, then you’ve got a nice clean cut that will heal over and be part of the crape myrtle,” King said. “The trees should look very graceful in the winter and the summer.

“You shouldn’t murder them as we often say.”

Not cutting a stem back to the main branch will lead to an undesirable look, King said.

“If you leave a two or three inch stem cut off, then you get something that is going to sprout with a broom-like effect — many little small branches off of the one stump,” she said.

Even if a tree only needs to be cut back a little from the street or driveway, King said never to skimp and always cut all the way back to the main branch.

Knowing the proper place to cut is important, and so is knowing what branches to cut and what branches to leave alone.

King said that after years of pruning crape myrtles it is easy to see what limbs need to go, but she did offer some pointers for pruners who aren’t quite as seasoned.

First she said center branches of the tree need to looked at carefully, and any that cross other branches should be removed.

This prevents the branches from rubbing together when the wind blows which can damage the trees.

“When you get to looking at crape myrtle trees and discover what is crossing and rubbing, you can actually see where one limb has actually rubbed the bark off of another,” she said.

Not only does pruning away crossing braches prevent damage to other braches, it also allow for better air flow in the top of the tree.

“If you get rid of all the crossing branches, you get better air circulation in the tree and that cuts down on fungus that might get in it,” she said.

If, after removing crossing braches, a tree still appears thick in the middle, King said more pruning in the middle can be done. The desired result is a tree that air can freely move through.

“Mostly you just need to thin out the middle if it gets too thick,” she said. “That is so that air can circulate through.”

It is also important to wait until the winter months to prune crape myrtles, because that is when the plant is dormant.

“Right now is ideal,” King said.

If a tree isn’t pruned while it is dormant it is best to wait until the next winter to prune.

And even if a tree has been subjected to years of improper pruning, King said it is never too late to start doing it the right way.

“You can work really hard at the stumps and cut them off,” she said. “Or you can even cut (the tree) all the way to the ground it will resprout itself.

“Then you can train it the right way.”