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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Wednesday - March 24, 2010
From: San Marcos , TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: General Botany, Planting, Trees
Title: Why is my 3 year old Redbud not flowering in San Marcos, TX?
Answered by: Jimmy Mills
QUESTION:
My Cercis canadensis var. mexicana, purchased at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, is 3 years old, very robust, but has never bloomed. Any explanation?ANSWER:
Mr. Smarty Plants thinks that a three year old, robust red bud is old enough to flower, so lets look elsewhere for an explanation. Two factors that can influence flowering are sunlight and fertilizer. Is it getting enough sunlight? The light for requirement for Cercis canadensis var. mexicana (Mexican redbud) calls for full sun to partial shade. The more sun, the better the flowering (at least 6 hours per day).
Flowering is aslo affected by the nutrient balance in the soil; particularly the ratio of nitrogen to phosphorus (the N/P ratio). If the N/P ratio gets too high, flowering can be inhibited. This can happen if your tree is receiving too much regular lawn fertilizer (which is generally higher in nitrogen). The pH of the soil can affect the availability certain nutrients.
This link from Colorado State University Extension provides good information about phosphorus fertilizerrs.
More General Botany Questions
Can Condalia hookeri (Brasil or Bluewood condalia) self-pollinate?
May 07, 2014 - Good morning Mr. SP,
I see from your description of Condalia hookeri that this species has bisexual flowers. Do you know if it is self-incompatible?
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Student research on fire-resistance plant labels from Garden Ridge TX
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I'm a 4th grader at Garden Ridge Elementary in Comal County. I am researching fire resistant plants. Can you please tell me if most plants' tags say whether they are fire r...
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