Great color in a tree of bush?

My husband loves crape myrtles. They are not my favorite bush or tree, but secretly, I love their color. We have three at our house, two in the front yard and one in the back. There was a great article in the Florida Times Union July 20, 2013 edition, page D-7, if interested. Gardening: Crape myrtles thrive as trees, shrubs or foundation plants | jacksonville.com

The history is rather interesting, the plant was originally brought over from China to Great Britain, but dubbed a failure when it failed to bloom in the crazy seasons of England. It only started thriving when in 1786, it was brought over to Charleston, SC by plant explorer Andre Michaux. The main reason is that these plants need heat to flourish. They thrive on it to push out all their flowers. Tough to get lots of heat in Great Britain, but they can get the great flowers sent to them from the United States.

Powdery mildew does grow on them, but there are variations that have been bred to be resistant to the issue. I know we can spray them, but there are so many insects that will feed on the aphids that it may make sense to allow the tree/bush/shrub to exist on its own as it would in the wild. And, do we really need more pesticides in our lives?

Some of these can grow into large trees, 20-30 feet tall. This is important to know because the JEA likes to cut down our Oaks, Magnolias, and other trees that get in the way of power lines. What better than to plant Crape Myrtles which should not need the JEA "cut" as it is known. A nice addition with the Crape Myrtle is the bark and as it grows in the summer, the bark is shed, showing off a wide range of colors. Leaves change to yellow, and the tree begins to change for the next season. If you decide to commit Crape Murder, and cut the tree back down to a bush, while looking unsightly, it is still healthy for the tree to promote new growth.

Enjoy the Crape Myrtle as a reject from her majesty's kingdom, one that we are blessed to have in the South.

Liz