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Lythraceae
Crepe Myrtle
Lagerstroemia indica
Eloquence, beauty, summer's joy.
- Family
- Lythraceae
- Genus
- Lagerstroemia
- Native to
- Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia, China
- Bloom season
- Summer, Early Fall
- Type
- deciduous tree or shrub
- Height
- 2–8 m
- Sunlight
- Full sun
- Soil
- Well-drained, slightly acidic
- Water
- Moderate; drought tolerant once established
- Hardiness
- 6–10
- Lifespan
- 50+ years
Did you know
- Crepe myrtles get their name from the crinkled, paper-like (crepe-like) texture of their petals.
- Despite being deciduous, the smooth mottled bark provides year-round beauty, peeling in patterns of cinnamon, gray, and tan.
- Each flower lasts only a day, but each panicle has dozens, giving the tree a continuous bloom for 60–120 days.
- Crepe myrtles are sometimes called 'lilac of the South' for their iconic place in Southern U.S. gardens.
- Carl Linnaeus named the genus in honor of his friend Magnus von Lagerström, a Swedish merchant who supplied him with plants from East Asia.