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Lagerstroemia
Also called Crape Myrtle, Crepe Myrtles, Crape Myrtles
Lagerstroemia is a genus of deciduous and evergreen trees and shrubs, mostly small to medium multi-trunked trees, grown for long-lasting summer flowers and bark in warm climates. Growing them well comes down to full sun, warmth and a good dry spell in winter.
Lagerstroemia (), commonly known as crape myrtle (also commonly spelled crepe myrtle, crape-myrtle, or crapemyrtle), is a genus of deciduous and evergreen trees and shrubs native to the Indian subcontinent, southeast Asia, northern Australia, and other parts of Oceania, cultivated in warmer climates around the world. It is a member of the family Lythraceae, which is also known as the loosestrife family. These flowering trees are often planted both privately and commercially as ornamentals.
Lagerstroemia species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera (moth and butterfly) species, including Endoclita malabaricus.
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, but in Vietnam's Cát Tiên National Park, the dominant stands of Lagerstroemia calyculata in secondary forest are thought to have survived (after episodes of logging) due to the low quality of wood.
Lagerstroemia × egolfii · Thai Crape Myrtle · Crapemyrtle · Lagerstroemia langkawiensis · Lagerstroemia loudonii · Pride of India · Lagerstroemia tomentosa
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Lagerstroemia by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
