Lagerstroemia indica Yang Tse - Crape Myrtle

The Lagerstroemia indica 'Yang Tse' is a very popular variety of Indian Lilac, thanks to its superb early flowering with deep pink carmine, even in northern regions. This vigorous bush, with an upright habit, has beautiful shiny green leaves that turn red in autumn. Its smooth bark is often richly coloured. These bushes like warmth but appreciate a little moisture at their feet in summer to support their flowering. This one, grown in many regions, will make a sensation when planted alone in a small garden, as a lively hedge, or at the heart of a flower bed.

The Lagerstroemia indica 'Yang Tse' belongs to the Lythraceae family. The Lagerstroemia indica, from which it originates, is native to China. The famous cultivar 'Yang Tse' was selected in 1983 at the Demartis nursery in Dordogne. It has been the best-selling variety for the past 50 years. This very vigorous and hardy bush reaches a height of 4 to 5 metres (13 to 16 feet) at maturity, with a spread of about 3 metres (10 feet). Its flowering generally starts in early July and lasts until September. The flowers are characterised by slender pedicels, each bearing five undulate-edged petals that make up this flower. The flowers, with a crepe-like texture, are gathered in large, dense, and heavy panicles, forming a pyramid shape at the tips of the branches. In the case of 'Yang Tse', the abundant flowering is a deep carmine to intense magenta colour. The coriaceous and deciduous foliage is a shiny dark green. It consists of small ovate leaves that take on a pretty coppery red hue in autumn, depending on the climate. Finally, and to end on a high note, its bark is truly beautiful, smooth, beige with brown-red stripes, peeling off in coloured patches (cinnamon, faded red, old rose, cream).

Indian Lilacs traditionally grace gardens in the Southwest. Preferring the humid and warm South Atlantic to the dry and windy Mediterranean, it is a small tree that deserves to be acclimated in the colder areas of our country, by carefully choosing the variety and its location. Its hardiness and vigour allow for this. It looks best when planted alone, close to the house, where you can fully enjoy its generosity. It will make a good impression in a shrub bed, a flowering hedge, or emerging from a mound of perennials. Create a flower bed like a bouquet, with Nepeta, Salvia sclarea or jamensis, and Aster laevis. In autumn, it accompanies cotinus and deciduous euonymus, which are as colourful as it is. In a large pot on the terrace, it puts on a show while summer flowering fades. Imagine a weaving of thyme (Thymus hirsutus, longicaulis, nitens), oregano, and silver baskets to dress the base of its trunk, emphasise the beauty of its bark, and reflect its beautiful flowering.

NB: We would like to point out that this tree produces fruits that have a narcotic effect if ingested.