Ornamental
Crape Myrtle Basham Pink
COLLEGE STATION — Crape myrtles have been one of the most popular ornamental plants in the U.S. since they were introduced around 1790 by the French botanist Andre Michaux, said Dr. Bill Welch, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service landscape horticulturist in College Station. A Texas-born variety – Basham’s Party Pink – is being promoted as a new Texas Superstar for its disease resistance, vigor and colorful display, according to a horticulture expert.
Basham’s Party Pink crape myrtle is one of the best medium-to-large varieties for Texas and the South, Welch said.
From Welch’s perspective as a plant historian who appreciates the hybridization of old and new varieties, Basham’s Party Pink has it all.
"In my observations over the years, it’s the best of all crape myrtles of that size," he said. “It has nice lavender, silvery-pink blooms and attractive, peeling bark on the trunks. It has cold hardiness and mildew resistance, which is important in the South, and is a low maintenance, water-efficient tree that deserves to be promoted more.”
Basham’s Party Pink is named after Bill Basham, a horticulturist for the city of Houston in the 1960s-70s. Basham was credited with crossing a Japanese variety, Lagerstroemia fauriei, that showed resistance to mildew and also displayed desired aesthetic qualities such as exfoliating bark and beautiful foliage, with a crape myrtle variety common in the South, Lagerstroemia indica, Welch said.
Example of Sizes
