Birth flower for July 6
Crape myrtle
Meaning: eloquence
Crape myrtle blooms from midsummer into early autumn, so in Chinese and Japanese it is called the 'hundred-days red'. Its old bark peels away to leave a satin-smooth trunk, and the Japanese name sarusuberi means 'even monkeys slip'. In Taiwan it is nicknamed the 'ticklish tree', since folk lore says its branches tremble when you scratch the trunk. The crinkled petals resemble crêpe fabric, hence the English name.