10 Great Patio Trees

By Marie Hofer

The mid- to late-summer flowers — when few other shrubs or trees are blooming — is one of this plant's attributes. Its bark, shown off on a multi-trunked form, is the other, varying from creamy white to gray to sandy brown to cinnamon, depending on the species and cultivar. Crape myrtle (Lagerstroemia sp.) comes in a wide range of sizes, from dwarf (a few feet tall) to the typical tree, which averages 20 to 30 feet tall. Flowers can be pink, lavender, rose, almost-red and white. USDA Zones (6) 7 to 9. Find out more about crape myrtle's cold-hardiness.