Lakeshore Garden Centres Plant Finder

Other Names:  Crape Myrtle, Crepe Myrtle

Group/Class:  Thunderstruck Series

Brand:  Garden Debut®

Description:

This spectacular tree is covered in masses of white blooms in summer to fall, over dark green foliage that fades to near-black; a stunning landscape accent tree that reaches mature dimensions very quickly

Ornamental Features

Thunderstruck™ White Lightning™ Crapemyrtle is clothed in stunning panicles of white frilly flowers at the ends of the branches from mid summer to mid fall, which emerge from distinctive crimson flower buds. Its attractive oval leaves emerge green in spring, turning burgundy in colour with hints of black. The foliage often turns dark red in fall. The crimson stems can be quite attractive.

Landscape Attributes

Thunderstruck™ White Lightning™ Crapemyrtle is a dense multi-stemmed perennial with an upright spreading habit of growth. Its relatively fine texture sets it apart from other garden plants with less refined foliage.

This is a relatively low maintenance plant, and is best cut back to the ground in late winter before active growth resumes. It is a good choice for attracting bees and butterflies to your yard. It has no significant negative characteristics.

Thunderstruck™ White Lightning™ Crapemyrtle is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Accent
• Mass Planting
• Hedges/Screening
• General Garden Use

Planting & Growing

Thunderstruck™ White Lightning™ Crapemyrtle will grow to be about 30 feet tall at maturity, with a spread of 15 feet. It has a low canopy with a typical clearance of 4 feet from the ground. Although it is technically a woody plant, this fast-growing plant can be expected to behave as a perennial in our climate if planted outdoors over the winter, usually regrowing from its base (crown) the following year. As such, gardeners should take into consideration that it will perform differently than it would in its native habitat.

This plant does best in full sun to partial shade. It prefers to grow in average to moist conditions, and shouldn't be allowed to dry out. To help this plant achive its best flowering performance, periodically apply a flower-boosting fertilizer from early spring through into the active growing season. It is very fussy about its soil conditions and must have rich, acidic soils to ensure success, and is subject to chlorosis (yellowing) of the foliage in alkaline soils. It is highly tolerant of urban pollution and will even thrive in inner city environments. This particular variety is an interspecific hybrid.

This plant is not reliably hardy in our region, and certain restrictions may apply; contact the store for more information.