Native Plants
Q. Who is Mr. Smarty Plants?
A: There are those who suspect Wildflower Center volunteers are the culpable and capable culprits. Yet, others think staff members 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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Smarty Plants Question Topics
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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| Webworm on Texas Mountain Laurel in Texas September 02, 2015 I thought my mountain laurel had web worms and I sprayed for them. Now the plant looks like it still has the worms even though none are present. Also, I sprayed with a fungicide because some of the ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Question about a beetle eating bees August 22, 2015 I have a beetle that is about index finger or pinkie fingernail size. I have a bee hive and it's eating the bees by injecting it with an inch long probe and sucking out the liquid of my bees. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Lace Bugs on Lantana August 06, 2015 All my lantana bushes are suffering from severe lace bug infestation. The lace bugs have been seen via microscope as well exoskeletons and poop. The buds are destroyed and I have no flowers for hummin... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Pest Dug Up and Ate Hypoxis Corms August 06, 2015 After years of no problems, something recently dug up and ate all my Yellow star-grass corms. What is attracted to them and is there an organic way to prevent it? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Pests on Fan Tex Ash July 30, 2015 We planted a Fan Tex Ash last year on our property. It's doing very well, but there are a lot of large stink bugs, yellow jackets and red wasps on it daily. We cannot seem to find any information on ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| White spotting on prickly pear cactus July 28, 2015 Hello- I have large prickly pear cacti and just noticed large white spotting on some of the leaves. I also see some black bugs and apparently they are the problem.They are about 1/4" long. How can I ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Hydrangea with Pest and Sun Issues July 26, 2015 My hydrangea is in trouble. Something is eating holes in the leaves which then turn brown on the edges (the holes and the tips of the leaves are also burned). It looks like someone burned them with ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Identity of tiny green spiders found in Sego lilies July 14, 2015 Hi - I'm wondering if you can identify for me the name of the tiny green spiders that can be found inside Sego Lilies (Calochortus nuttallii). I have a photo if that would be helpful. Thanks!! Ca... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Keeping bugs out of a Texas home June 29, 2015 I'm slowly growing my gardens into natural habitats for birds, bees, butterflies and other little critters but would like to keep them outside of my house. Being in central Texas it is difficult to ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Discouraging Poison Ivy June 27, 2015 Is there a fern that discourages poison ivy from growing? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
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