10 Varieties of Miniature Crape Myrtle

Long after the flowers of spring have come and gone, crape myrtles come into blossom in the early to mid summer and stay with us for the rest of the season. Although crape myrtles are often grown as the centerpiece of a small lawn or as a hedge shrub, crape myrtles are also available in a number of dwarf and miniature cultivars that are suitable for smaller spaces, container gardening and even ground cover. Here are ten of the most popular varieties of miniature crape myrtles.

Rosy Carpet

At a maximum height of only one foot, rosy carpet crape myrtle has such a dwarf and spreading habit that it is sometimes even grown asground cover. They have attractive pink flowers resembling that of an azalea.

Sacramento

Sacramento crape myrtle grows to a height of 2-3' and has crinkled, light red flowers. During the fall, the bark is revealed as an attractive shade of non-exfoliating red.

Tightwad Red

Tightwad red crape myrtles are named after their bunched up, highly crinkled red flowers. This dwarf cultivar only grows to a height of 2-3'.

Baton Rouge

Baton Rouge is an interesting cultivar of crape myrtle that has particularly small pink flowers and grows to a height of 2-3' with slightly weeping branches.

New Orleans Weeping

Another crape myrtle cultivar with a Louisiana namesake, New Orleans Weeping has light to deep purple flowers and grows 2-3' high. This variety of crape myrtle is a little more susceptible to mildew than some similar cultivars.

Chickasaw

Chickasaw crape myrtles have delicate pink flowers and a tight growth habit that reaches a height of only 1-2'. This is a fairly cold resistant and drought hardy cultivar that can put up with some unideal conditions.

Delta Blush

This cultivar of crape myrtle has is the one of the more weeping varieties of miniature crape myrtles. Despite its weeping habit, delta blush has showy bunches of long lasting, light pink flowers that make this cultivar a favorite as a showcase plant in a garden.

McFadden's Pinkie Myrlette

McFadden's Pinkie Myrlette is one of the slowest growing varieties of crape myrtle available, rising to the modest stature of only five feet after thirty years of growth. An ideal candidate for container gardening, McFadden has a tight growth habit that flowers with attractive bunches of small, light pink flowers.

Pocomoke

Pocomoke is another variety of crape myrtle that makes for a good potted plant. With a broad, full habit, Pocomoke grows from 2-3 feet tall and has hot pink flowers that do not bloom until the late summer.

Weeping Alamo Fire

As the name suggests, the flowers of weeping Alamo fire crape myrtles are particularly arresting shocks of red busting onto the scene in the mid summer. This miniature cultivar grows to a maximum height of around three feet.

Sources:

http://plantanswers.tamu.edu/trees/crapemyrtle/crape_myrtle_varieties.html
http://stores.ecolage.com/-strse-211/chickasaw-crape-myrtle-lagerstroemia/Detail.bok
http://www.evergreenplantnursery.com/Pocomoke-Dwarf-Crape-Myrtle-p/myrpoc1.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lagerstroemia