crepe myrtle

Originally uploaded by vickylw

When we bought this apartment building, the crepe myrtle shrub wasn't looking too well --- a bit crowded by a rogue mulberry tree starting to grow near the foundation. Once we removed that, the crepe myrtle seemed to explode!

This old shrub was probably planted soon after the building was first built in 1920 -- there are several of the exact same color planted in yards of this older neighborhood.

(I know the mulberry couldn't stay there because it would damage the foundation as it grew. But the berries tasted SO GOOD!)