Crape Myrtle

Lagerstroemia

AKA: Crape myrtle (also spelled crepe myrtle or crêpe myrtle)

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Native to China, India, and Southeast Asia. The crepe myrtle came to England around 1759. A botanist to King Louis XVI, André Michaux, introduced the crepe myrtle into Charleston, SC around the late 1780s. (Southern Living - A Brief History of the Crepe Myrtle).

André Michaux was said to have sent crepe myrtle seedlings to be grown at Monticello and Mount Vernon (Smithsonian Article, Louisiana State University Article)

As a hardy shrub tree that grows well in most soil types and generally warm climates, the crepe myrtle has become an incredibly common ornamental plant across southern North America, Central America, and South America. Despite being non-native, it’s seeds are popular among native birds, and its flowers attract pollinators.