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Q. Who is Mr. Smarty Plants?

A: There are those who suspect Wildflower Center volunteers Nan Hampton, Jimmy Mills and Barbara Medford to be the culpable and capable parties. Yet, others think staff members Damon Waitt, Joe Marcus and Philip Hawkins might play some, albeit small, role. You can torture us with your plant questions, but we will never reveal the Green Guru's secret identity.

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Please forgive us, but Mr. Smarty Plants has been overwhelmed by a flood of mail and must take a break for awhile to catch up. We hope to be accepting new questions again soon. Thank you!

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Questions From Near You

Porter, TX
Slow development in Shumard Oak from Porter TX
We had two Shumard Oaks Planted in Sept of last year (2012). About a month later, they started browning and dropping their leaves (no color change). Now I noticed on one of the trees the buds have sta...
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Porter, TX
What variations of non-native Lavender will grow in Montgomery County TX
I live in East Montgomery County, Texas. What varieties of Lavender grow best in my area? I had some success with Providence variety and Spanish variety. I would like to grow more varieties if possi...
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Porter, TX
Evergreen shrub for hedge in Porter, Texas
We are trying to decide on what would be good privacy hedges (at least 6 ft. tall) to run down our long backyard chainlink fences. I'm allergic to Ligustrums and we have 2 dogs and a cat which I hear...
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Splendora, TX
Native grass for Splendora, Texas.
We have a newly built house on a two acre lot in Splendora (zip code 77372). We would like to seed (the best choice) for grass. What about centipede or buffalo grass? The soil is a sand with clay 4...
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Kingwood, TX
Best preparation time for wildflower garden for summer
Is it too late in late Fall to prepare a wildflower garden for next spring/summer?
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Kingwood, TX
Source of seeds for Penstemon murrayanus
Is it possible to obtain seeds of Penstemon murrayanus? I'd like to contribute to the propagation of this threatened species.
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Kingwood, TX
Native plants to replace non-native Pentas plant in butterfly garden
Can you suggest a Native alternative to Pentas? a freeze killed mine and if a native plant can fill that nectar/color void in my garden I'd appreciate it. thanks for all that y'all do.
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Kingwood, TX
Pine bark on non-native St. Augustine grass in Kingwood TX
I had two large Pine trees cut down. In the process of cutting the trees down there is a lot of pine bark from the tree on my St Augustine grass. Will this affect the growth of my grass?
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Kingwood, TX
Snails in my flower beds
I live in Kingwood, Texas (north of Houston). I have been inundated with snails in my flower beds in my front & backyard. I really didn't want to use a pesticide, but they were eating all of my flo...
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Plum Grove, TX
Plants for shade in Texas
I am looking for shade tolerant shrubs to plant near our carport. We live in Plum Grove, near Splendora, Texas. I don't want anything with thorns that will scratch the paint or me while getting i...
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Humble, TX
Perennials for flower bed in Humble TX
I have a 10 foot by 10 foot flower bed that needs to be replanted and I am located in Houston, TX so what would be some good perennials to plant that are good to grow in this heat? I have been told L...
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Humble, TX
Wild native trees with orange blooms
What is the wild native tree that is blooming orange blooms - as you drive down the road thru Chappel Hill, and Brenham area. I've never seen these before when we went viewing bluebonnets - however,...
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Humble, TX
Need advice for growing Texas Mountain Laurel from seed in Humble, TX
We live in Humble, Texas 77396 and would like to grow some Texas Mountain Laurel trees from seed. I recently read that they may not grow well in this area because they prefer the Texas Hill country a...
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Humble, TX
Native grass mix suitable for Houston
Do you have a native grass mix that is appropriate to the Houston area- or will the one you have developed to this point work as well here as it does in Central Texas? If not, when will you begin to ...
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Spring, TX
Repotting non-native Agave ghiesbreghtii from Spring TX
I've recently purchased an Agave ghiesbreghtii, and will need to re-pot it soon. I have some cactus soil mix as well as a few rocks to put in the bottom of its new pot. There seem to be roots comi...
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Spring, TX
Evergreen native shrubs for hedge in Austin
Please help! Looking for an inexpensive, fast growing shrub or tree to plant along 200' fence in our backyard. Lots of sun (southwest side) but I wouldn't call it dry. Hoping for something that k...
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Spring, TX
Replacement for pygmy date palms in Spring, TX
We live in Spring, Texas and the front door of our house faces East. Last winter we lost both of our beautiful pigmy date palms! We are trying to find "unique" accent plants for our front entry. D...
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Spring, TX
Heat tolerant arborvitae for Spring TX
Is there an arborvitae that would be heat-tolerant to Spring, Texas (north of Houston) and amenable to neutral clay soil?
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Spring, TX
Eucalyptus tree for Spring, Texas
I've heard eucalyptus trees do not lose their leaves in the winter and grow considerably tall. I want to replace a decaying pine tree with a eucalyptus tree. Do you recommend that for the Spring, T...
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Spring, TX
Should Ipomea alba be planted in a yard in Spring, TX?
I would like to know if there is any reason not to plant Tropical Morning glory (Moon Flower-Ipomoea alba)in my yard. Is it toxic or aggressivley invasive? I am looking at a space in my side yard wi...
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Spring, TX
Drought resistant flowering plants for Spring, TX
Hi Mr. Smarty Pants. I live in Spring Tx. and wanted to plant a garden in my front yard. I'm looking for flowering plants that are colorful, easy to manage, and drought resistant but so far can't fi...
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