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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| Flowering plants for shade in Ohio June 15, 2008 I am trying to find flowering plants I can grow in my perennial shade garden. So far I am having a difficult time except for hostas, nettle and myrtle. I need help to get my miniature lilac to blo... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Large shrub for screen in shade June 11, 2008 I am trying to find some large shrubs that will thrive in shade in the north Texas climate. This area will receive very little light during the day but need to grow quite large to hide a fence and cr... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Native understory plants for shade under live oaks June 09, 2008 I have large live oak trees in my front yard. I would like to start North Central Texas native landscaping under them, where no grass will grow. Do you know of some plants that would do well in ful... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Native ground covers for shade in East Texas June 06, 2008 I live in Mount Pleasant, Texas which is in northeast Texas. I would like a list of ground covers that would do well in our area. The place I want to put it gets a lot of shade. The ground is clay. Th... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Screening bush for shady area June 05, 2008 I need some kind of bush that will act as an air conditioning blind. So far the deer have eaten or destroyed everything planted in the very shady mulch bed. What do you recommend? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Different shades of green in Taxodium distichum (bald cypress) June 05, 2008 I have two bald cypress trees 50 feet apart, but there was very different soil in the two holes. One was a clayey soil and the other was much more the Austin limestone soil. The trees are about 2 ye... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Turks cap not blooming in Austin June 03, 2008 Why is my Turks Cap not blooming? It gets about an hour of sun in the morning, then shade for the rest of the day. It gets watered with the sprinkler system that waters our lawn. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Tree and vine for shade and privacy June 03, 2008 We recently added a deck in our backyard which faces west, we live in Circle C (southwest Austin). The afternoon sun is intense so we're looking to plant something along our fence line to provide sh... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Native plants for dry shade in Virginia May 23, 2008 I live in Reston, Virginia and have dry shade. What are the best plants to use for my garden. Xeriscaping and native plants are important considerations. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Evergreen groundcover under pine tree in NY May 23, 2008 Hello! I live in upstate NY. I'm trying to find an evergreen ground cover to plant under a pine tree. I believe it's a white spruce (but I'm not postive). I've read conflicting information reg... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
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