Sharon said:And I would choose the reddest of the reds. So beautiful.

That's what I'm choosing should I win one!

dave said:I have both Crepe Myrtle (Lagerstroemia 'Ebony Flame') (aka Best Red) or Crepe Myrtle (Lagerstroemia 'Ebony Embers') (aka Red Hot) and they are both brilliant red! I love them both. The latter is to me a more vibrant red while the former is more of a maroonish deep darker red color.

Thank you so much for this Dave! I'm going with Ebony Flame for sure!

If you like RED, you can't go wrong with Black Diamond 'Best Red' aka 'Ebony Flame'

Lin, those are so gorgeous -- I just realized that I don't believe I've ever seen a crepe myrtle blooming! We have relatives in FL that we visit at least every other year, but in February or March, which is when we go, it seems like they've all been cut back to looking more or less like a tree that's in the process of being cut down...

Weedwhacker said:Lin, those are so gorgeous -- I just realized that I don't believe I've ever seen a crepe myrtle blooming! We have relatives in FL that we visit at least every other year, but in February or March, which is when we go, it seems like they've all been cut back to looking more or less like a tree that's in the process of being cut down...

Oh yes, they are doing the "crepe murder" thing. They don't bloom in Feb./March anyway Sandy. They bloom in summer.

Weedwhacker said:We have relatives in FL that we visit at least every other year, but in February or March, which is when we go, it seems like they've all been cut back to looking more or less like a tree that's in the process of being cut down...

That's called Crepe Murder! I've never understood why that became the norm in many areas of the south; I think I saw that for the first time @ ten or twelve years ago when cities around Florida began heavy, drastic pruning and the landscape looked so strange! I came home from work one afternoon and my husband had taken his chain saw to the Crepe's in our yard and I thought I was gonna cry. I asked him why in the world he did that and he said, "Well, I saw city crews doing it along the roadways and I thought that's what you were supposed to do this time of year." It never happened in our yard again.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?...

OMG --

Since that's all I've seen (well, I probably wouldn't have recognized one that had just been "properly pruned"), I thought that was the "normal" thing to do!! Must have a talk with my BIL and his wife...

Rob, loved the video -- a little corny, but the pruned tree certainly looks much happier than the (murdered) ones that I've seen.

What happens if you just let them "go" ?? Looks like they have a lot of suckers coming up? So you would end up with some kind of thicket? Reminds me of the way lilacs grow up here

And, I am NOT going to Florida in the summer just to see them bloom -- not when I can see the photos that all of you post!

Our own @LarryR had an article posted about crepe murder, once upon a time. http://garden.org/ideas/view/L... That was my introduction to the term.

LOL, Mary -- I have to admit that I've never paid much attention to anything here about crepe myrtles! (since I have no realistic hope of growing one where I live... )

Love these Crepe Myrtles with the dark foliage! That dark Red Ebony Flame is a beauty. But I am most partial to the Pure White with the contrasting Dark Foliage. I'm new at Raffles, and learning how it all works. I'm in for this one ~ Hoping ~ Hoping ~ Hoping

For a White Crepe Myrtle ~ White is for Angels ~ I would like to plant one for my Angel

I love the dark leaves and white blooms of the Black Diamond series so much! I only have one so far, the Best Red but the Crepe Myrtle (Lagerstroemia 'Ebony and Ivory') (a/k/a Pure White) is at the top of my *wish list*. http://www.plantmegreen.com/co...

Next May, my husband and I are retiring and moving a bit farther south to zone 10a and I'm contemplating a row of Crepe Myrtles all along either side of the driveway which is located at the back side of the house. The house exterior is painted yellow and although I like yellow it's just not my taste for the exterior color of this house. It will be a couple of years before we'll have it re-painted so I'd like to make the view more aesthetically pleasing from the road and I think Crepe Myrtles lining the drive would help do that. I've noticed that the maximum recommended zone for the Black Diamond series of Crepe Myrtle is zone 9b but other L. indica do quite beautifully in zone 10a so I will have to see how my Black Diamond Crepe performs once we get moved; I think it will probably do just fine and I will then add to my collection! I'd love to have either side of the driveway with alternating Black Diamond Best Red and Pure White.

That would be a gorgeous sight, Lin.

Thanks ... right now that is my plan once we get there and get settled!

Lin - Why do you think Sebastian is zone 10a? I have been told it is still 9b. But either way, plants do fine here. Beautiful home. It looks familiar to me because I used to drive back in through that neighborhood years ago because I had friends that lived in that gated community.

Becky - I put in the Sebastian, Fl Zip Code 32958, typed in the crazy letters it asks for and it came up zone 10a: http://planthardiness.ars.usda...

Well ... that is very interesting!!! Climate change has changed our growing zone apparently! Geez!

beckygardener said: Beautiful home. It looks familiar to me because I used to drive back in through that neighborhood years ago because I had friends that lived in that gated community.

Thanks Becky, it supposedly has more square footage than our current home but the rooms seem much smaller; probably because there are a lot of weird angles. We have large furniture so it's going to be interesting trying to place everything; we've already given some furniture to my sister and brother in law who live down the street and have a really large home and we might end up getting rid of a few more things before we make the move. LOL, I guess I could say I bought the house for the property because I fell in love with the 3/4 acre property and all the trees, and the enclosed Atrium more than I did the inside of the house.
This is a picture of the Atrium ... the dog was checking it out when I was cleaning out there in preparation for our tenants to move in. I can't wait to get some of my plants and my little bench in there.

Oh geesh ... I just realized what thread I'm on and that I got way off track. I seem to do that the older I get.

@Dave, is it possible for you to delete my last two posts so that we can stay on subject here? Sorry.