Crepe Myrtle
Lagerstroemia indica
Also known as Crepe Flower, May Flower, Myrtle, Queen's Crape Myrtle, Common Crape Myrtle
- Habit
- Tree
- Found in India
- West Bengal, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh & more
- Flowering
- April-September
Plant Details
- Scientific name
- Lagerstroemia indica
- Genus
- Lagerstroemia
- Family
- Lythraceae
- Habit
- Tree
- Distribution
- Himalayas, China, India, Japan, Indo-china and other warmer parts of the world
- Found in India
- West Bengal, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Karnataka, Uttarakhand, Tamil Nadu, Assam, Bihar, Jammu & Kashmir, Delhi, Kerala, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Sikkim, Telangana, Tripura, Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland
- Flowering & fruiting
- April-September
- Conservation status
- Not Evaluated (NE)
Leaf characters
- Leaf shape
- OrbicularrecordedRounded, roughly circular.“leaves are small, smooth-edged, circular or oval-shaped, and dark green changing to yellow and orange and red in autumn.” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Leaf surface
- GlabrousrecordedSmooth, hairless.“leaves are small, smooth-edged, circular or oval-shaped, and dark green changing to yellow and orange and red in autumn.” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
Characters marked “recorded” are for Crepe Myrtle itself; the rest are typical of the Lythraceae family.
Flower & fruit characters
- Flower colour
- Pinkrecorded
- Flower arrangement
- PaniclerecordedA branching cluster of clusters.“Flowers, on different trees, are white, pink, mauve, purple or carmine with crimped petals, in panicles up to 9 cm (3+1⁄2 in).” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
Typical of the family
- Flower symmetry
- Zygomorphic (bilaterally symmetrical)
- Fruit
- Berry
Characters marked “recorded” are for Crepe Myrtle itself; the rest are typical of the Lythraceae family — flowering plants only.
Local Names
- Hindi
- सावनी Saona, Sawani, फ़राश Farash
- Nepali
- असारे Asare, असारे फूल
- Bengali
- ফুরুশ Furush, জরুল Jarul, দেশি ফুরুস
- Tamil
- பவலக்குரிந்ஜி Pavalakkurinji
- Marathi
- Dhayti, ताम्हण
Crepe Myrtle in India
This flowering shrub or small tree, known as सावनी Saona (Hindi), பவலக்குரிந்ஜி Pavalakkurinji (Tamil), Dhayti (Marathi), ফুরুশ Furush (Bengali), is planted widely for its long-lasting, crinkled flowers. Lagerstroemia indica is grown across Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Rajasthan, Karnataka, Uttarakhand, popular in gardens and as a street tree.
Uses
It's grown almost entirely as an ornamental, valued for its long summer flowering season and its smooth, attractively mottled bark in winter.
How to Identify Crepe Myrtle
A shrub or small tree with smooth, flaking, mottled bark and simple oval leaves. Flowers have distinctively crinkled, crepe-paper-like petals in shades of pink, purple, red or white, clustered in showy sprays at the branch tips.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is Crepe Myrtle called in different Indian languages?
- सावनी Saona (Hindi); பவலக்குரிந்ஜி Pavalakkurinji (Tamil); Dhayti (Marathi); ফুরুশ Furush (Bengali).
- Why are the petals called 'crepe-like'?
- Each petal has a thin, crinkled, papery texture similar to crepe paper, which is the source of the plant's common English name.
- Is the bark attractive too?
- Yes — its smooth bark flakes away in patches to reveal a mottled pattern underneath, giving the trunk visual interest even outside the flowering season.
Lythraceae
Loosestrife/Henna family
Crepe Myrtle belongs to the Lythraceae family.
The illustration represents the family — not necessarily this exact species.
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Common plant problems
All plant problem & care guides →More in Lythraceae
View all Lythraceae →Sources: GBIF — Lagerstroemia indica (India distribution & vernacular names) (CC BY 4.0) · Wikipedia — Lagerstroemia indica (background/comprehension only) (CC BY-SA 4.0)