Queen's Myrtle


The trunk is twisted or sinewy in appearance with thin, pale bark. The leaves are simple and prominently veined, old leaves turn red or rusty-coloured before falling. The inflorescence is an erect panicle with numerous pink flowers, the 5 separate petals are crinkly. The globular woody capsules (about 2 cm diameter) are often used in floral arrangements.

This is one of only a few deciduous trees which grow in tropical and subtropical areas of the country. A profusion of large, three-inch wide, bright pink to lavender blooms appear in dense, foot-long, terminal panicles from June to July, making Queen’s Crape-Myrtle a spectacular specimen or street tree. This large, upright rounded, deciduous tree is clothed with 12-inch-long, dark green, oblong, leathery leaves which turn attractively red before falling in winter. The bark is smooth, mottled and peeling. The bark is thin and easily injured.

Banaba leaves, a popular medicine used in the Phillipines to treat diabetes, are high in corosolic acid, a natural plant insulin. In 1999 a study conducted on diabetes patients at the Southwestern Institute of Biomedical Research in Bradenton, Florida, found that corosolic acid universally lowered blood sugar levels in all patients. The more corosolic acid they recieved, the more their blood sugar levels dropped.

Common Name:
Queen's Myrtle
Other Names:
Banaba, Crape Myrtle, Crepe Myrtle, Pride of India, Queen's Crape Myrtle
Botanical Name:
Lagerstoemia speciosa
Genus:
Lagerstoemia
Family:
Lythraceae
Native Location:
India, Southeast Asia and the Philippines.
Traditional Uses:
Include brewing tea from the leaves as a treatment for diabetes and hyperglycemia or high blood sugar.
Medicinal Uses:
Japanese researchers have conducted numerous studies and found that Banaba extract contains corosolic acid which has actions in stimulating glucose transport into cells. Because of this action, corosolic acid behaves similarly to insulin. By keeping blood sugar and insulin levels in check, banaba may be an effective supplement for promoting weight loss in certain individuals. An interesting “side-effect” of tighter control of blood sugar and insulin levels is a significant tendency of banaba to promote weight loss (an average of 2-4 lbs. per month) without significant dietary alterations. It is likely that modulation of glucose and insulin levels reduces total caloric intake somewhat and encourages moderate weight loss.
Height:
40-60ft
Width:
30-40ft
Economic Uses:
In India, the wood is used for railroad ties and construction.
Hardiness:
Z10-11
Botanical/Horticultural Uses:
Large parking lot islands (200 square feet in size); wide tree lawns (6 feet wide); medium-sized parking lot islands (100-200 square feet in size); medium-sized tree lawns (4-6 feet wide); recommended for buffer strips around parking lots or for median strip plantings in the highway; shade tree; narrow tree lawns (3-4 feet wide); specimen; residential street tree; tree has been successfully grown in urban areas where air pollution, poor drainage, compacted soil, and/or drought are common
Cultivation:
Tree grows in full sun tolerates:clay; loam; sand; acidic; alkaline; well-drained soil.
Propagation:
By cuttings, division of root suckers, or by seed which germinate readily. Plants will flower the second year from seed. There are other species of tropical Lagerstroemia, some available in selected nurseries. Plants under grown under cover and in nurseries may be subject to Aphids and scale, followed by sooty mold.
Parts Use:
Leaves
Possible Side Effects:
No serious side effects have been reported when banaba is used properly under a physician's supervision.
Drug Interactions:
Taking banaba with these drugs may increase the risk of hypoglycemia (low blood sugar):
Acarbose (Prandase, Precose) Acetohexamide Chlorpropamide (Diabinese, Novo-Propamide) Gliclazide (Diamicron, Novo-Gliclazide) Glimepiride (Amaryl)
Glipizide (Glucotrol) Glipizide and Metformin (Metaglip) Gliquidone (Glurenorm, Beglynor) Glyburide (DiaBeta, Micronase) Glyburide and Metformin (Glucovance)
Insulin (Humulin, Novolin R) Metformin (Glucophage, Riomet) Miglitol (Glyset) Nateglinide (Starlix) Pioglitazone (Actos)
Repaglinide (GlucoNorm, Prandin) Rosiglitazone (Avandia) Rosiglitazone and Metformin (Avandamet) Tolazamide (Tolinase) Tolbutamide (Apo-Tolbutamide, Tol-Tab)
Supplement Interaction:
May increase blood glucose-lowering effects and risk of hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) when used with herbs and supplements that lower glucose levels, such as alpha-lipoic acid, chromium, Devil's Claw, Ginseng, and Psyllium.
Bibliography:
The Essential Herb-Drug-Vitamin Interaction Guide by George T. Grossberg, MD and Barry Fox, PhD Copyright © 2007 by Barry Fox PhD. pp.57-58