I've been a chef for 28 years! I use order a case from Tyson's delivery of the Black Diamond steaks One restaurant I worked in we made our own black diamond steaks with Ribeye steaks. I ordered the seasoning mix that came in a large bag like flour would come in but the bag was see through plastic bag. The seasoned powder was called Black Cow. We'd take the ribeye steaks and soak em overnight in the seasoned black-diamond powder mix. I'd broil the Black-Diamond each order. They tasted exactly like the awesome Black Diamond steaks! Some restaurants do have Black Diamond Steak on the menu. I too have searched for recipes to make my own Black Diamond steaks! I found recipes online claiming it was Black Diamond steak recipe & when I tried the recipes? None of them came close to the taste I'm looking for of the Black Diamond Steak! Now when I search online and see a recipe for Black Diamond? As soon as I read a certain ingredient in the recipe I know it's not what I'm looking for. If you've had the real Black Diamond Steak at one time? You'll never forget how tender the steak was and the flavors out of this world! I gave up on trying other people's recipes online for Black Diamond Steak! I found recently online that anyone can buy the famous Black Diamond Steaks by the case. Tyson's is the brand & they come with free delivery to your front door. You get 32-6 oz Black Diamond Steaks for $201.95 wholesale price that comes to only: $6.32 each! BJ'S wholesale Club, use to sell the Tyson's Black Diamond 6 oz steak that came in 4 6 oz steaks in a box but it figures they discontinued that awesome product! However the price was way too high to buy them from BJ'S (Even though I did buy them cause I love these steaks!) Now that I can buy them myself ? An entire case at a wholesale price? That's so well worth it! I have a stand-up freezer here at home. I can easily by a case with plenty of room for a whole case of the best Black Diamond Steaks the one & only original I've always loved very much!

I wasn't familiar with black diamond but was also curious so I looked in the All Things Plants website which I frequent. Here is what I found (although it still doesn't answer your question about mildew resistance): It turns out that the Black Diamond™ series of crepe myrtles are in fact the exact same plants as the Ebony series of Crepe Myrtles produced by the breeding work of Dr. Cecil Pounders of the ARS-USDA. When you buy a Black Diamond crepe myrtle, you are in fact actually buying an Ebony crepe myrtle. I contacted Dr. Pounders about all this, and he responded by saying, "Yes, Ebony Crapemyrtles and Black Diamond Crapemyrtles are the same clones under different names. Black Diamond Pure White is 'Ebony & Ivory'. BD Best Red is 'Ebony Flame'. BD Blush is 'Ebony Glow'. BD Crimson Red is 'Ebony Fire'. BD Red Hot is 'Ebony Embers'. The Ebony names are the officially registered cultivar names and anyone is allowed to propagate and sell plants under the Ebony names without paying any fees. The practice of selling public domain plants under a trademark is legal and is not a new practice. You usually can identify the practice if you see a trademark plant tag with no ppaf or patent number listed." So there you have it, Crepe Myrtle fans, straight from the horse's mouth. Edited to add this link to an article by Leslie Hallack, a horticulturist which does say there is an improved resistance to mildew and leaf spot. Still doesn't really change my mind about using a bunch of crepe myrtles again. http://lesliehalleck.com/garden-library/articles/article-for-reprint-black-diamond-in-the-rough-new-crapemyrtles-in-big-dema

You're being impatient. I am one zone higher than you. March was COLD here in NJ..., and Crepes are LATE..., ZZZZZZZZZZZ. Mine does not wake up until May, but then I have had flowers into NOVEMBER, so not a bad deal! Relax and enjoy the magnolias, cherries, and tulips till then. This year, flowers that survived the March cold are running a bit late.

@marmiegard_z7b, when I started building my first garden, I thought it would be a one-and-done thing. My 13 year old dog had congestive heart failure, she couldn't really walk, and only had maybe a few months to live. And I had this expanse of lawn that never did well. This was long before COVID and my income was great, so I decided to convert that part of the lawn to a garden while spending time outside with my dog. It was a very sweet bonding time and I'm glad I did it, but of course the garden kept growing. And growing. Over time my tastes change regularly, and like you I keep getting inspired by other gardens with different styles. So I'm almost constantly digging up plants and changing everything! LOL And now I have 13 separate gardens :-O Because of that, I try to only buy plants that handle being dug up and transplanted pretty well, with bonus points to those that I can divide over time. But recently I've started to appreciate trees and shrubs more, especially when they're evergreen and can help fill in large areas. Long story short, my thought here is to fill in between the boulder and crape myrtle with a few shrubs, then as they mature I'll surround them with some type of ground cover. Then between the shrubs and walkway, I can fill in with perennials or self seeding annuals. Maybe a blend of black eyed susans and speedwell, but that'll probably be a decision for next year. @Jilly, your abelia is gorgeous! Thanks for the pics :-) I have two Sunshine Ligustrum myself! I planted them in 2021. They're larger than yours, but nowhere near as pretty and lush. And for perspective: The area is full sun and has two sprinklers, so I don't know why they never look good :-/ I have three Ever Red Fringe Flower loropetalum here, too, that never look good. I took cuttings recently, though, and if they survive then I have plenty of new areas for them! If I can figure out how to make them pretty and lush like yours then I would love using it near the crape myrtle :-)