"Who has no red flowers for a hundred days, and crape myrtles bloom for half a year. ——Yang Wanli [Song]
Crape myrtle (Lagerstroemia indica) is a deciduous or evergreen shrub or tree of the genus Lagerstroemia in the family Lythraceae, whose flowers can bloom from early June to mid-October, hence the name "whooping red". In "Guangqun Fangpu", the crape myrtle flower is described as follows: "A branch counts the flowers, a flower counts, every breeze arrives, the delicate trembles, and the dancing swallows are shocked, which is not enough to be a metaphor." In the Tang Dynasty, this flower was planted more, and it was durable, and it was lovely. In a few words, the smart beauty of crape myrtle flowers is vividly described.
Crape myrtle flowers
In fact, each crape myrtle flower blooms for only one day, and before the morning dew has dissipated, the crape myrtle buds begin to bloom quietly, and when the sun rises high, it will fully unfold, like a splendid work of art. The next day, the crape myrtle stigma begins to curl up gently, fulfilling its mission. The crape myrtle flowers we see are presented in the form of panicles, which contain hundreds of flowers in one inflorescence, and although the crape myrtle flowers bloom for only one day, each flower opens in one inflorescence, so that the entire inflorescence can last for two to three weeks.
The process of opening crape myrtle flowers
Crape myrtle panicles that have not yet opened buds
Crape myrtle panicles in full bloom
Crape myrtle flowers in nature can be roughly divided into purple, red, pink, white 4 color systems, although purple is not the five colors (green, red, yellow, white, black), but since ancient times there is a saying that purple is precious, so the purple crape myrtle flower in all colors of crape myrtle is authentic, Wang Shimao of the Ming Dynasty "School Garden Miscellaneous" said: "There are four kinds of crape myrtle, red, purple, light red, white, purple is the main color. "In the early days, according to the different varieties and colors of crape myrtle, they were also divided into four categories: crape myrtle, red myrtle, cuiwei and silver myrtle.
Nowadays, with the continuous efforts of breeders, through interspecific hybridization, mutagenesis breeding and other means, the flower color of crape myrtle flowers is more rich and diverse, and now we have bright red crape myrtle and crape myrtle varieties with compound flowers in the landscaping.
鲜红色花瓣紫薇品种"Dallas Red"
复色花瓣紫薇品种"Prarie Lace"
《群芳谱》云：“以手爪其肤，彻顶动摇，故名‘怕痒花’”。
From a distance, the lower part of the crape myrtle tree has a smooth and whitish dry bark, which is very distinctive, and when you gently touch the lower trunk with your hand, the branches, leaves and flowers at the top will be gently shaken immediately, so it is also called the itchy tree. This is because the crape myrtle tree trunk is thick at the top and thin at the bottom, and the flower branches at the top of the tree are soft and light, but the panicles are clustered and slightly top-heavy, and just touching it will cause the whole crape myrtle to tremble.
The older the crape myrtle flower, the smoother its dry skin becomes, and it has endured the baptism of the long years, and is still blooming proudly in the hot summer.
"Crape myrtle is a different wood, and its name is the same as Xingyuan. It should be a flower in the sky, accidentally falling into the dust. ——Liu Changshi [Song]
The pronunciation of the word "crape myrtle" is similar to "Ziwei", in ancient times, it was believed that Ziweixing (that is, the North Star) was the residence of the emperor of heaven, and since the Han Dynasty, Ziwei Palace was used as a metaphor for the residence of the emperor, that is, the imperial palace. The name of "crape myrtle" can be traced back to Wang Jia's "Collected Memories" of the Eastern Jin Dynasty: "At the end of Emperor Huai, the folk gardens were full of artemisia thorns, and foxes and rabbits gathered. In the first year of Yuanxi, Taishi ordered Gao Tang Zhong to play Yingying to confuse Ziwei, if he didn't avoid it early, there should be no Luoyang. And the Quartet inside and outside the edict and the palaces of Jingyi and the forest guard, as well as the folk garden, are planted with crape myrtle, thinking that they are tired of winning. To the end of Liu, Shi, Yao, and Fu, this artemisia thorn does not remove itself. At that time, Luoyang City was full of artemisia grass and thorns, foxes and rabbits were wreaking havoc, Tai Shiling thought that this was because people had angered Ziweixing, if not dealt with in time, Luoyang City would be destroyed, so Emperor Huai issued an edict to plant crape myrtle in the palace and the people to avoid disasters.
In the first year of Tang Kaiyuan, the meaning of astronomical Ziwei Yuan was taken, and the Zhongshu Province was changed to Ziwei Province, and the Zhongshu Order was Ziwei Order. Crape myrtle flowers are planted in the province, so it is also called crape myrtle province. In the past dynasties, the people of Zhongshu Province liked to call themselves "crape myrtle". The Tang Dynasty poet Bai Juyi wrote "Crape Myrtle Flower" when he was on duty one day: "Your Excellency Silk Lun's article is quiet, and the bell and drum tower is engraved and leaked. Sitting alone at dusk who is the companion, crape myrtle flower to crape myrtle lang. Therefore, crape myrtle, also known as "official flower", not only represents the dignity and well-being of "Ziwei", but also becomes a symbol of a good future and prosperous official fortune. But it is precisely because the connotation of crape myrtle's "official flower" is not the lofty and clear beauty pursued by literati and scholars, compared with the four gentlemen of "Meilan Bamboo Chrysanthemum", there are relatively few praises and paintings of crape myrtle, which actually reflects a cultural aesthetic prejudice, which is really a pity.
Crape myrtle (Ming Dynasty Chen Chun)
"The crape myrtle tree is in the east of the small building, and the sun is scorching. ——Liu Ji [Ming]
Crape myrtle tree shape is beautiful, rich in flower color, likes fertilizer and water, resistant to pruning, easy to propagate by cuttings, strong ability to absorb dust, lasts for a long time in midsummer, has a variety of plant types (from miniature potted plants to tall trees), and the characteristics of rich landscape uses make it the backbone tree species in the garden in mild climate areas, and its stems, flowers, leaves, and roots can also be used as medicine, which has the effects of clearing heat and detoxifying, stopping diarrhea, stopping bleeding, and relieving pain. The city flowers of Anyang in Henan, Haining in Zhejiang, Xuzhou, Suqian and Yancheng in Jiangsu, Zigong in Sichuan, Xiangyang in Hubei, Guiyang in Guizhou, Xianyang in Shaanxi and Keelung in Taiwan are all crape myrtle flowers.
The new crape myrtle branches are soft and easy to landscaping, so crape myrtle is also a widely used bonsai material, in landscaping, including crape myrtle with beautiful tree shape for solitary planting, crape myrtle planted in open groups, potted crape myrtle with compact plant size, and crape myrtle landscaping with different shapes and tactful branches.
Crape myrtle street tree
Crape myrtle is a member of the large crape myrtle family, and there are about 55 species of crape myrtle in the world, mainly in eastern, southeastern, southern Asia, and northern Australia. As the mother of the world's gardens, the mainland is also one of the origins of crape myrtle, according to statistics, China currently has a total of 23 species of crape myrtle, 19 species of crape myrtle native to the mainland, 4 species of cultivated species, and the endemic species of the mainland include L. microcarpa (L. microcarpus). minuticarpa), L. Yunnan crape myrtle (L. intermedia), L. Crape Myrtle (L. fordii), Fujian crape myrtle (L. limii) and crape myrtle (L. sativa). stenopetala）。 At present, the most common crape myrtle plants in garden cultivation are crape myrtle and large-flowered crape myrtle (L. grandiflora). speciosa）。
Crape myrtle
The crape myrtle breeding team of the College of Landscape Architecture of Beijing Forestry University collected more than 80 copies of crape myrtle germplasm resources based on crape myrtle plants, integrated traditional hybrid breeding and molecular breeding methods, deeply analyzed the genetic mechanism of important traits such as crape myrtle plant type, leaf color, flower color, and floral fragrance, studied the affinity of crape myrtle interspecific hybridization and distant hybrid breeding, and cultivated a number of new crape myrtle varieties with good ornamentality, compact plant type, rich flower color and strong resistance.
Some new crape myrtle varieties cultivated by Beijing Forestry University
"The dawn welcomes the autumn dew with a new branch, and it does not occupy the most spring in the garden. Tao Li is speechless, smiling at the wind and the sunny people. - Du Mu [Tang]
Crape myrtle does not compete for spring, is not afraid of autumn, smiles at the sun, has a tenacious and humble character, it carries multiple meanings such as dignity, natural integration, tenacity and longevity in traditional Chinese culture, whether in horticulture, cultural traditions, or medicine, crape myrtle has its unique value. Nowadays, crape myrtle flowers are planted all over the motherland, it is not only a beautiful scenery, but also our love for nature and the cherishing of cultural heritage.
Author: Zheng Tangchun (Associate Professor, School of Landscape Architecture, Beijing Forestry University)
Editor: Wu Yuetong Yuan Jiawen (Xi)
Source: Guangming.com
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