How do you grow a crape myrtle from cuttings?

Trying to reproduce my great crape myrtle and was told by a neighbor the can be grown from cutting
What part of the branch or tree do you cut and what time of year do you cut it? Do you dip it in rooting hormone?

Thanks,
George in San Antonio

I rooted a tender tip from a tree type this spring when it was still a little reddish. I got it from a tree at the mall and just pinched about three inches off. I took it home and just poked it into a pot and put it in the shade. It took root after a few weeks. This is a small piece, and would take a few years to be a tree, but you could get a longer piece and try that.
I have taken cuttings from my shrub type and rooted them the same way. They flower when they are still very young. I have one I rooted in early spring and it has flowers on it now. It is about a foot tall.
I take cuttings in the spring since it flowers on new wood.
I didn't and have never used the rooting hormone. I seem to have the same results whether I use that on other things or not.

If it is still warm where you live, you can do cuttings now. Cut a branch about 8 inches long with the end still attached (where it flowered). Dip in Rootone root tone?? and put in sand. Keep moist and in light but not hot sun. We have over 60 crepe myrtles that are now over 20 feet tall that were rooted like that.

thanks so much for the help guys. Beautiful trees, i just love them.

Also, they grow well from seed. Check out the pic below......the lavender one in the middle came up out of nowhere - I did not plant it! Guess who mom and dad were? And just last week I found a small flowering plant of the same lavender color BEHIND the red one!! I also had a white one that planted itself but I had to pull it because of its location.

hiya steve! your white Natchez is gorgeous! I had one grow from seed out of nowhere.
Like windy said, they are easy to root. I seem to do well with the suckers. Have done it with or w/o rooting hormone. jester, I would try rooting several cuttings, just to improve your odds.

A couple of springs ago I tilled an area near a crepe myrtle also. I got quite a few "suckers" growing near it. So I imagine they root from roots dug and planted. I would try that, but then you risk losing the original plant if you mess up. The tiller seemed to have hit the roots that were several feet away from the parent plant and buried at least six inches under ground.
Some things I learn from mistakes. LOL

Wow Steve, what a beautiful yard! The only crape myrtle I have ever rooted was a "Natchez". I took a cutting about 6 inches and removed all but 2 leaves. I then just put it in some potting mix and put it in a shady spot outdoors. I watered it everyday and about 2 weeks later it started growing new leaves.

As far as growing from seed, keep in mind that all cultivars sold today are propagated by cuttings. They are done this way to ensure flower color, bark characteristics, and aphid/powdery mildew resistance. When they are seed grown they will be wild, and it's a 50/50 chance of getting good aphid resistance and the flower color will be unknown.