US Plant Patent PP14975
Whit VII
Crape myrtle plant named ‘Whit VII’
PUBLIC DOMAIN
Patent expired December 16, 2022. This plant is in the public domain — anyone may propagate and sell it.
Twenty years from the filing date would end on July 3, 2022. This patent earned 166 days of term adjustment for delay at the Patent Office, which is why it runs longer.

The record
- Patent number
- PP14975
- Filed
- July 3, 2002
- Granted
- July 6, 2004
- Expires
- December 16, 2022
- Assignee
- LACEBARK INC
- Inventor
- WHITCOMB CARL
Abstract
A new and distinct variety of crape myrtle, Lagerstroemia indica , which is characterized by a slow to moderate growth habit; leathery leaves which emerge crimson and quickly change to medium green; moderate seed set; inflorescences which are 8 to 16 inches tall and 6 to 10 inches wide; flower buds which are oxblood red; and flowers with tightly grouped and highly wrinkled petals. The new variety is also characterized by a long bloom period.
Show the legal claimThe single numbered claim as granted — the legal text that defines what this patent covers.
I claim: 1. A new and distinct variety of crape myrtle plant, substantially as illustrated and described.
Read the full patent: US Plant Patent PP14975 in full — the complete specification, every figure, and the file history.