Plant: Catawba - Crape Myrtle
Crape Myrtle · Lagerstroemia indica 'Catawba'
Size: 5 gal
Light
Bloom
Mature size
More about this plant
Catawba is a multi stemmed, rounded to vase shaped deciduous crape myrtle growing 12 to 15 feet tall and 8 to 10 feet wide. Large, long lasting, crepe like dark purple florets are carried in panicles 4.5 to 6.5 inches long from August into October above glossy dark green leaves that turn orangish red in fall, and the smooth brown, multicolored bark adds winter interest. It wants full sun and moist, well drained acidic soil, is low maintenance, and resists deer, disease, drought and urban conditions. Chlorosis can appear in alkaline soils and spent flowers may stain paving.
- Full Sun
- Grows to 15 ft tall and 10 ft wide
- Blooms in summer, fall
- Hardy in USDA zones 7-9
- Deciduous foliage
Plant description
Catawba is a multi stemmed, rounded to vase shaped deciduous crape myrtle growing 12 to 15 feet tall and 8 to 10 feet wide. Large, long lasting, crepe like dark purple florets are carried in panicles 4.5 to 6.5 inches long from August into October above glossy dark green leaves that turn orangish red in fall, and the smooth brown, multicolored bark adds winter interest. It wants full sun and moist, well drained acidic soil, is low maintenance, and resists deer, disease, drought and urban conditions. Chlorosis can appear in alkaline soils and spent flowers may stain paving.
- Flowers
- Large, long lasting, crepe like dark purple florets in panicles 4.5 to 6.5 inches long and 4 to 6 inches wide, opening from August into October.
- Foliage
- Glossy and dark green through the summer, turning orangish red in the fall.
- Fruit
- Six valved dehiscent capsules, brown and about half an inch wide, persisting through winter; the disc shaped seeds are 3/8 inch across and winged.
- Bark & stems
- Smooth, attractive, brown and multicolored.
- Pruning
- Avoid severe pruning or topping, which is not needed to control size. Make thinning cuts in late winter or early spring, before the new growth that carries the blooms starts.
- Native range
- Central Himalaya to S. China and Indo-China, Philippines, Japan
