June 28
Crepe Myrtles
I am thankful for crepe myrtles. They have a wispy, lacy look to them. Now they are out in full bloom here. To me they are a very feminine flower-dainty and lovely. They are from India, Southeast Asia, and Australia, but they love the south. They are sometimes called crape myrtle.
The photo above are of the blossoms of one crepe myrtle tree looking toward another crepe myrtle in the front yard of one of my neighbors. The photo below is of two colors of crepe myrtle flowers on the top of my roof. I was up there cutting the branches away from the roof so they wouldn't damage it. These are the flowers that were on the shingles before I swept them off. This crepe myrtle 'mess' is too pretty to be upset about it getting all over everything. What is left on the ground below the tree is sometimes just as visually pleasing as the tree itself.
the ballad of crepe myrtle
once upon a time
there was a little tree
it branched everywhere
but had not a blossom to see
england did not suit it
it was not southern enough
so it was brought down here
where the climate, heat, and humidity
are just the right stuff
way down yonder in the south
we give you hospitality and grits
we eat mudbugs and oysters
an abundance of ya’lls will give you fits
lacy, fine, and delicate pastels
the flowers of our summer blooming tree
they call it the crepe myrtle
it is as southern as the south can be.
© rt tulley