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.
Did you know you can access the Native Plant Information Network with your web-enabled smartphone?
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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Wednesday - April 18, 2007
From: Austin, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Trees
Title: Mixed native plantings for steep slope in Austin
Answered by: Nan Hampton
QUESTION:
Dear Mr. Smarty Plants: We wrote to you recently about plantings for a fairly steep slope in a park in Austin. We had asked about grasses and perennials. An article about planting on slopes in this month's Organic Gardener recommends a mix of grasses, shrubs and trees because the root systems of each hold the soil at different depths. So we are hoping tht you can recommend some native small trees and shrubs for this part shade area. Thanks for your previous answer. We are using that information as the basis for our plan.ANSWER:
Here are a few suggestions for shrubs/small trees that do well in Central Texas in partial shade:Callicarpa americana (American beautyberry)
Pavonia lasiopetala (Texas swampmallow)
Rhus aromatica (fragrant sumac)
Sophora secundiflora (mescal bean)
You can do your own search and see more choices by selecting "Hill Country Horticulture" from the Special Collections on our Native Plants Database page and then choosing the "Narrow your search by location, characteristics or growing conditions" option.
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Native plants for Pflugerville, TX in blackland soil
March 21, 2008 - Mr. S-P,
I'm perusing the plant sale list for a couple of tall shrubs to plant on the sunny southwest side of my house, in Blackland soil. It is generally dry there because of the sun, but can ge...
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Reducing the Height of a Redbud Tree
January 23, 2016 - We have a very large, about 15-year old, Redbud tree that is growing so tall it's obstructing our view of the river. How and when can we prune this tree back so it does not hurt the tree.
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