Don't know about zone 6b, but Muscogee and Natchez (lt. lavender and white) are supposed to be some of the longest blooming crapes. An older list is in the link below.

BTW, someone will undoutedly correct and lecture you about the spelling of crepe/crape (they say it's supposed to be crape but I've seen it both ways), but you won't be able to say it was me. Okay? ;-)

Here is a link that might be useful: link

That's the only crape myrtle bloom period list I've seen. Anyone have a more comprehensive/up-to-date version? And, how about rebloomers?

Actually, many words in the English Language have more than one accetable spelling. According to "The American Heritage College Dictionary," the word can be spelled either way, although "crape" is used most often.

There are many very convincing arguments for spelling it with an "a" rather than an "e", but one of the most important, IMO, is that much more information and much higher quality information can be found using the "a" version in internet searches. Pretty much all botanical gardens, arboretums, educators, extension services, and the Crape Myrtle Society spell it with an "a". More consistency in spelling would lead to better communication about the subject. I can just imagine someone looking for some fact and not being able to find it because, although the information was out there, it was presented with a different spelling than whichever version the information seeker was using. Many claim that the scientific name should be used (and in a perfect world, I completely agree), but, in reality, it unfortunately is often not included in many related articles.

below find another link with some cultivar information and photos, including bloom period.
i have seen the test plots for the images from the link that jim provided for auburn university. it is dramatically colorful at peak bloom time when viewed from the nearby highway.
i'm partial to the purple-flowered ones.

Here is a link that might be useful: clemson university cooperative extension

Thanks Jeff!!!

I've got a small grove started, and will add more soon. I haven't taken bloom period into account so far, but I will look at that also for my next round of picks.

Thanks, Jeff!

You made my day!! I was looking through that list to see which Crepe Myrtles bloom the longest and I was so incredibly thrilled to see that it's the one I actually have! Pink Velour - I'm training her into standard form (still only about 5 feet tall, but beautiful). She's one of my fav's. I have her positioned right infront of a Cotinus 'Golden Spirit' and the contract with Pink Velour's beautiful burgundy-tinged foliage is quite stunning.

I'm so garden happy this year, it's downright sinful!

;)

Happy Gardening, All!

Thanks Jimtnc and Jeff for the great links.
Good points, Brandon. As a linguist, I tend to be more relativistic as I study the spelling and meanings of words changing on a daily basis. Eventhough in a perfect world meanings and spellings would remain constant, people like me will continue to make mistakes, and when enough of us make a mistake, it becomes standard. Maybe "crepe" krept in because it gives the term a Frenchy feel, something like calling a pancake a crepe suddenly makes it gourmet.
My proofreading and typing skills have drastically deteriorated with the advent of the computer, so feel free to point out out other errors. The letters seem to meld together on the screen. However, I consider myself duly corrected and will endeavor to do better.

Every time I type more than about a three word sentence, my computer lets me play a game called eliminate-the-red-lines. I just click on the red underlined words until they disappear. Sometimes they turn into completely different words without my noticing it and the meanings of my sentences are completely lost. (-;

The blooms look like crepe paper --exactly. Why in the world would they switch to "crape" is beyond me.

it's a common name. There are no rules governing common names. You can call it anything you want and it's not wrong.

"Why in the world would they switch to "crape" is beyond me."

Actually, that is a bit backwards :-) 'Crape' is the original spelling of 'crepe', so if anything the "switch" would have been from crape to crepe!

But as Sara states, it's a common name and they can be anything or spelled any way you - or regional convention - prefer.

And to further convolute it, the word comes from the French 'crêpe', which is derived from the Old French word crespe, which in turn comes from the Latin crispa (see, I can Google with the best of them). Those of us who studied French, sew, and cook, know the word well, from crêpe de chine to crêpes Suzette. In France, pancakes are crêpes, no matter if fancy or not. The word essentially means 'wrinkled' and is a good description of the Lagerstroemia flowers. Crape is the English language spelling of crepe. Clear as mud?