Thursday, July 7, 2011

I've Been Warned


The crepe myrtle, also spelled crape myrtle, is one of the hardiest shrubs in the south.  It can take the heat and go days without water.  It starts blooming the end of June and will bloom until the first frost. 



It can be left as a shrub or trimmed to look like a tree.



As this plant gets older, the trunk becomes thicker.



Red, pink, white and purple are the most popular colors you will see in our neighborhood.  I have planted the pink and red ones for our yard.


I am amazed at the hardiness of these shrubs.  We had a very hard winter and I thought that I had lost most of ours to the freezing temperatures.  I cut back all the dead limbs and it wasn't long, once warm temperatures arrived, that they all came back with profuse foilage. I love this shrub so much that I have planted twelve in our backyard since moving here. I've been warned by my hubby not to plant anymore because he says they are hard to mow around.  I've told him not to worry... (smile).

Christine









7 comments:

Carol said...

It is amazing how crepe myrtle bushes/trees are so hardy. Seems they're even prettier the hotter the weather.

Smiles,
Carol

Anonymous said...

the more you plant the less he has to mow.....

Oklahoma Granny said...

Maybe a zero-turn mower would help him out a bit?

Anonymous said...

I love them!!

~Kim at Golden Pines~ said...

I love them for the same reason you do--They really are lovely and you can never have too many, can you?

Anonymous said...

I agree with Miz LIz...I think you need to plant a bunch randomly out in the middle of your backyard.

Vee said...

I don't think we have crape myrtle here...must check. Men are always concerned about mowing around trees. What is the big deal? :D