Lagerstroemia (pron.

: /lerstrimi/),[1] commonly known as crape myrtle or crepe myrtle, is agenus of around 50 species of deciduous and evergreen trees and shrubs native to the Indian Subcontinent, southeast Asia, northern Australia and parts of Oceania, cultivated in warmer climates around the world. It is a member of the Lythraceae, which is also known as the loosestrife family. The genus is named after the Swedish merchant Magnus von Lagerstrm, who supplied Carolus Linnaeuswith plants he collected. It should not be confused with Malpighia glabra, wild crepemyrtle, also known as Acerola. [2] These flowering trees are beautifully colored and are often planted both privately and commercially. Popular varieties used in modern landscaping include the bright red Dynamite Crape Myrtle, the deep pink Pink Velour Crape and the purple Twilight Crape Myrtle, which also has a bark that changes colors. These trees come in many different hues, as outlined on the Crape Myrtle Comparison Chart.
Contents
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1 Description 2 Selected species 3 References 4 Notes 5 External links

[edit]Description While various species and cultivars are able to fill a wide variety of landscape needs, crape myrtles are chiefly known for their colorful and long-lasting flowers. Most species of Lagerstroemia have sinewy, fluted stems and branches with a mottled appearance that arises from having bark that sheds throughout the year. The leaves are opposite, simple, with entire margins, and vary from 520 cm (28 in). While all species are woody in nature, they can range in height from over 100 feet to under one foot; most, however are small to medium multiple-trunked trees and shrubs. The leaves of temperate species provide autumn color. Flowers are borne in summer and autumn in panicles of crinkled flowers with a crepe-like texture. Colors vary from deep purple to red to white, with almost every shade in between. Although no blue-flowered varieties exist, it is toward the blue end of the spectrum that the flowers trend, with no sight of orange or yellow except in stamens and pistils. The fruit is a capsule, green and succulent at first, then ripening to dark brown or black dryness. It splits along six or seven lines, producing teeth much like those of the calyx, and releases numerous, small, winged seeds. In their respective climates, both subtropical and tropical species are common in domestic and commercial landscapes. The timber of some species has been used to manufacture bridges, furniture and railway sleepers.[3] Lagerstroemiaspecies are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including Endoclita malabaricus. The leaves of L. parviflora are fed on by the Antheraea paphia moth which produces the tassar silk (tussah), a form of wild silk of commercial importance in India.[4]