Last week I was in DC and I took a trip to the US National Arboretum. They had an excellent display of Japanese Crepe Myrtles, aka Lagerstroemia fauriei. The variety they had was 'Kiowa' (see link).
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pictures don't do justice to the real thing. These Crepes were absolutely magnificent. The blooms were not quite as showy as the much more popular Lagerstroemia indica species, however the form and the bark could not be matched by any L. indicas I have ever seen. I suspect that the bloom duration for L. fauriei is very short, which is my theory on why you never see them (at least I've never seen any in Texas yet). Does anyone have a 'Kiowa' that can confirm my suspicions or can cast some light on why these beautiful trees aren't seen much in the residential landscape?