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Ask Mr. Smarty Plants

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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Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.

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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

Fate, TX
Purchase access to plants at Wildflower Center
I am interested in purchasing some of your plants. How can I do that? Do you send plants thru the mail or is their a nursery near you that has access to your plants that does? I am interested in Sa...
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Fate, TX
What do cedars do to cause cedar fever?
What do the native cedars in Fate Tx do in the winter that causes allergies to get really bad that they have named it cedar fever
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Royse City, TX
Identity of Dwarf Oyster Plant.
I purchased a plant from the local Home Depot, and it said on the sticker in was a Dwarf Oyster Plant. I can't seem to find any information on that name, so maybe it was marked wrong. See if you ca...
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Royse City, TX
Keeping dogs and cats out of flower gardens
Do you have any suggestions to keep the cats and dogs out of my flower garden? They either just walk through it, and trample everything, or sleep on the soft blooms and squish everything. I am despe...
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Royse City, TX
Legal to mow wildflowers in HOA in Royse City, TX
We live out in the country in Rockwall County, Texas. Is it legal to mow the wildflowers on our 2 acre lots? The HOA documents we committed to require the homesites to be maintained, but there is di...
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Royse City, TX
Wind damage to pecan tree in Royse City, TX
The wind broke my pecan tree trunk in two. It is approximately 2 in caliper and about 15 feet tall. Is there a tree trunk repair?
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Rockwall , TX
Native species of tree for Rockwall TX
Hello, I am attempting to plant a native species of tree 20 miles east of Dallas, Texas (Rockwall, TX) in honor of my brother's marriage. He is a biologist and a huge supporter of native species....
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Rockwall, TX
10 year old Wisteria fails to bloom in Rockwall, TX.
I love wisteria. I had four (4) wisteria plants professionally planted at least ten (10) years ago. These wisteria plants have NEVER bloomed. Why not?
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Rockwall, TX
Non-native pistacio problem Rockwall, TX.
I have an eight year old Pistacio tree that has leaves turning brown and falling off. It is June! Why?
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Rockwall, TX
Browning leaves on recently planted chinkapin oak in Rockwall TX
I just planted a chinkapin oak that is about 1 1\2 inches thick last week and now some of the leaves are turning brown. Does that mean its dying? Do you have any tips that I could use to protect it?
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Rockwall, TX
Trees and shrubs for Rockwall, TX
Hi! I've been advised to contact you regarding my dilemma. Please rsvp asap. I'm ready to plant. 1)I have a small backyard with full, hot, Dallas sun and cold winters, many times below freezing. ...
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Rockwall, TX
Native plants for creekside erosion control
I need advice on what native plants I can use to slow erosion by my creek. The watershed for a large area ends up at my place, and nothing is growing where most of the runoff flows. I've got braken...
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Rockwall, TX
Privacy screen for Rockwall, TX
Dallas area privacy screen recommendations. I have about 125ft of wrought iron fence between my yard and the neighbor's and a drainage pipe that runs along the fence. The neighbor's property sits u...
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Rockwall, TX
Decline of sheared dwarf hollies from Rockwall TX
I have 20 year old established dwarf yaupon hollies in front of the house that I trim every year and shape the same. This year the new growth that was 2 1/2 " long I noticed the new leaves were curli...
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Rockwall, TX
Plant identification
This incredible plant has grown up in the past two months. Considering the extreme heat of this summer, my husband assumes it must be a weed. We have had this skinny strip of dirt for four years, and ...
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Rockwall, TX
Blooms on Desert Willow withering quickly in Rockwall TX
Why do the blooms on my Desert Willow dry up and wither away in one or two days?
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Nevada, TX
A year and a half old live oak tree is doing poorly in Nevada, TX.
We planted a live oak tree about a year and a half ago. the tree is still rather small. The leaves are of a vibrant green, however the leave have only grown through the center of the tree and not out...
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Nevada, TX
White ash trees with bunched up leaves from Nevada TX
I have very young white ash trees (3' tall planted this winter) The leaves are crippled not opening up bunched up together and have a white powder. Is this aphids mites or what. Only on one tree. Th...
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Heath, TX
How to care for newly transplanted Live Oak.
I planted 3 B & B, 6" caliper live oaks in February and they lost most of their leaves during the normal time but when the new leaves grew back the amount of leaves were quite a bit less. I have th...
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Heath, TX
Growing Evergreen sumac in clay soil of Texas
I'm in need of a fast growing evergreen screening shrub/small tree. I'm considering the Evergreen Sumac but before I go further I need to know if this plant will thrive and remain evergreen in the D...
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Heath (near Dallas), TX
Sooty mold on Texas Sage in Heath TX
I have a Texas Sage that has developed a mildew, blight, fungus or (?) condition. Something has attacked the leaves with a black sooty condition. What is this and what can I do to help this plant thri...
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