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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!

Need help with plant identification, visit the plant identification page.

Questions From Near You

Tomball, TX
Correct cultural conditions for liatris
I recently bought some gayfeather (liatris pycnostachya) and planted in my yard in a nice full sun spot. Gets sun for roughly 10 hours a day. However, it's also the single driest spot in my yard (jus...
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Tomball, TX
Bluebonnet stencil for furniture
where or who would sell furniture stancils of bluebonnets
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Tomball, TX
Distinguishing elm species from volunteers in yard
What's the best way to distinguish young elm tree species apart from one another? We have a bunch coming up in our yard and we're trying to figure out if they are Winged, Cedar or American. Some of ...
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Tomball, TX
Want to take cuttings from Yaupon in Tomball, TX.
From Tomball, Texas - we have a very shaded back yard and would like some lower growing shrubbery as a screen for the neighbors. Wild yaupon holly is growing well on the fringes and I would like to f...
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Tomball, TX
Source for non-native yellow bauhinia in Tomball, TX
I am trying to find a yellow bauhinia plant/tree/shrub here in Tomball, TX. I went to the Arbor Gate in Tomball and they only have the white and orange, but they do have a yellow bauhinia on display ...
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The Woodlands(Spring), TX
Shrub for mostly shaded area in The Woodlands TX
What large shrub will grow in a partially shaded to mostly shaded tree area in The Woodlands(Spring), Texas which is north of Houston, Texas between Houston and Conroe? The Woodlands is in the very so...
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The Woodlands, TX
Plant ID from The Woodlands TX
Your plant database does not distinguish 2 native tree species. Common names for these 2 trees: American hophornbeam and ironwood or musclewood. These common names are used for both trees - even m...
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The Woodlands, TX
Why so many Sugar Hackberry seedlings in my back yard in The Woodlands, TX?
Why do I have so many Sugar Hackberry seedlings (Celtis Laevigata) sprouting up naturally in my back yard? There are a few Winged Elms in my neighborhood, but no Sugar Hackberry trees that I know of....
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The Woodlands, TX
Dog-proof grass from The Woodlands TX
I am looking for a hardy grass that can tolerate female dogs urine. Zoysia was suggested but I am concerned about it being invasive. Any suggestions?
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The Woodlands, TX
Destructive landscape crews in The Woodlands TX
Hi. We need help. We recently moved to a house where landscape crews have been blowing away the leaf litter from the front yard for many years. The underbrush was also cleared long ago. The result...
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The Woodlands, TX
Shade tree with non-aggressive roots for next to pool in The Woodlands TX
Hi Mr. Smarty Plants. We live in Spring, TX and are looking for a full-sun shade tree to plant in a large planter (about 6'x6') next to our pool. We want the tree to provide shade for our full a...
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The Woodlands, TX
Difficulty of watering at drip line of trees from The Woodlands TX
I'm watering my couple dozen native mature trees to make sure they survive this drought and its aftermath..and I'm reading about how to water at the drip line. But..all of my trees' drip lines ext...
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The Woodlands, TX
Defense against poison ivy from The Woodlands TX
Hi and thank you in advance for your help. My husband is allergic to Poison Ivy, Oak, Sumac, or something in our yard. We need someone who is very knowledgeable to come and identify any poisonous pla...
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The Woodlands, TX
Drought affecting native trees from The Woodlands
I've been trying to grow native trees in my yard for the past 3 years and I'm starting to question whether the amount of time required to spend watering them during the long hot season in Texas is r...
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The Woodlands, TX
Sturdiness of non- native poisonous oleanders
We've seen a dozen different types of non-native plants in our yard perish in last winter's brutal freezes and this summer's record drought..which is good..except for the Oleanders, which nature ca...
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The Woodlands, TX
Identity of invasive vine in The Woodlands, Texas
What is the invasive vine covering trees in The Woodlands, Texas?
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The Woodlands, TX
Mercer Society of Harris County Plant Sale from The Woodlands, TX
Love the Name! Anyway, the Mercer Society of Harris County will be having its annual plant sale late this month and as usual I will be attending. I'm trying to find some tropicals and sub-tropicals...
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The Woodlands, TX
Growing native trees from seeds
I'm trying to let large empty sections of my property revert back to woods by means of natural seeding. I have existing White Oaks, Water Oaks, Yaupon Hollies, Sweet Gums, Loblolly Pines, American E...
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The Woodlands, TX
Information about Lemon Cypress (Cupressus macrocarpa)
Lately, I've been seeing references to a tree/shrub called a "lemon cypress tree". It looks like a standard Italian cypress, but the foilage is yellow. I cannot find any reference to this plant e...
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The Woodlands, TX
Clover for possible lawn area in The Woodlands, TX
I have two areas in my large lawn that grass refuses to grow. I am thinking of seeding with clover which old lawns used to always have. Which clover will grow in this area? Where do I find seeds an...
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The Woodlands, TX
Identification of volunteer tree
I have a volunteer tree in my yard that has a mixture of serrated, non-serrated, and partially-serrated leaves on it. My tree identification guides all assume either serrated or non-serrated. How do...
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