Comprehensive Guide to Crapemyrtles: Planting, Care, and Landscape Inspiration

For gardeners in warmer climates, our Magic crapemyrtle collection is an absolute staple in the landscape!

Purple Magic Crapemyrtle

With a variety of shapes, sizes, and colors, there is a shrub for every gardening need in this group of gorgeous crapemyrtles. These shrubs hold up well to heat and full sun, making them a great choice for gardeners in the southern regions of the states.

Lunar Magic®

This crapemyrtle combines beautiful, rich, purple-black foliage with an abundance of white flower clusters. The blooms start to prolifically bloom in June and can be deadheaded to rebloom through fall. Lunar Magic® has a beautiful upright oval shape, is disease resistant, and serves as a fantastic focal point or large hedge in the landscape.

Shadow Magic

The combination of prolific dark rosy blooms and dark purple leaves are sure to make Shadow Magic a statement in the landscape. The dark purple leaves on Shadow Magic are incredibly disease resistant and remain glossy and dark spring through fall.

Coral Magic

A prolific bloomer, Coral Magic Crapemyrtle forms a rounded, dense shrub, loaded with salmon-pink flowers in early summer. Its new foliage is a glossy reddish color, eventually becoming dark green throughout the summer. Coral Magic blooms earlier than other crapemyrtle and is a heavy rebloomer if deadheaded.

Moonlight Magic

The purple-maroon foliage of Moonlight Magic holds up even throughout the hottest summer heat. To contrast, gorgeous white blooms appear in July and August. The habit is upright and perfect for a small tree.

Sunset Magic

For gardeners looking for a stunning crapemyrtle that is more compact, look no further than Sunset Magic. The large red blooms pair beautifully with the dark purple foliage and flowers more heavily than other crapemyrtles on the market. Along with being disease resistant, the foliage holds its color into late summer.

Ruffled Red Magic

This gorgeous crapemyrtle has distinctly different, carnation-like red flowers that pop against the dark green foliage. In fall, the leaves turn orange. The habit is upright and dense, which leads to a stunning display.

Twilight Magic

Twilight Magic has deep plum foliage and pink flowers that make it a truly stunning crapemyrtle. It really stands out as a large shrub or small tree in the landscape. The dark leaves hold their color and look amazing even without the blooms.

Plum Magic

This crapemyrtle forms a dense, rounded shrub covered in fuchsia-pink blooms by July. The plum-purple foliage eventually matures to rich dark green, setting off the bright flowers. Plum Magic blooms earlier than other crapemyrtle and is a heavy rebloomer if deadheaded.

Purple Magic

Glossy green leaves and dark purple flowers make Purple Magic a warm climate Rock Star Plant. This blooming machine flowers in mid-summer and is a heavy rebloomer when deadheaded. The leaves are highly disease resistant, so they stay dark green and beautiful all season.

Landscaping with Crapemyrtles
LITTLE HOTTIE® PANICLE HYDRANGEA + SUNSET MAGIC® CRAPEMYRTLE + EASY ELEGANCE® KASHMIR ROSE + ENDLESS SUMMER® POP STAR® REBLOOMING HYDRANGEA

This is a beautiful example of how adding crapemyrtles to a space can be a great way to tie the vignette together, while adding structure along as fence line. The mix of red, white, and blue colors in this design complement each other well and the dark foliage of Sunset Magic® (Zone 7-9) pops out to catch the eye as a focal point.

Care Tips for Crapemyrtles

Planting: Crapemyrtles thrive when planted in full sun. To ensure you are planting your Magic crapemyrtle correctly, check out our planting blog.

Watering: Crapemyrtles prefer soil that is kept evenly moist. Be sure to watch our video on watering for the best tips and tricks to keep your shrubs hydrated all season long.

Fertilizing: Crapemyrtles don’t need much fertilizer its growth, but if you want to apply, be sure to use a granular, well balanced, slow-release fertilizer. Apply once in spring when you see green leafy new growth and be sure to follow the directions on the package. To learn more, watch our video on how to fertilize in spring.

Pruning: Crapemyrtles rebloom if deadheaded, so make sure you prune away any spent blooms to make room for new ones! If shaping is needed, wait until after it is done blooming to remove any dead or crossing branches and trim as needed.


Learn more about landscaping and Best Buds for crapemyrtles from our Warm Climate Rock Star Guide. You can shop each of these crapemyrtles online during our shipping season or use our Find a Retailer tool to locate First Editions ® plants at garden centers near you. Sign up for our monthly newsletter and remember to follow us on social for even more tips, tricks, and inspiration.