Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.
Can't find the answer in our existing FAQs, submit a question to Mr. Smarty Plants.
Need help with plant identification, visit the plant identification page.
From: Austin, TX
Region: Southeast
Topic: Edible Plants
Title: Is Texas Thistle edible from Austin
Answered by: Barbara Medford
See this excerpt from Edible and Useful Plants of Texas by Delena Tull. See Bibliography below. Our answer to this question would have been, "Yes, if you are a bumblebee, turkey or goldfinch." However, according to this book, "thistles provide one of the best salad greens and cooked vegetables in the state." If you're really hungry.
From our Native Plant Image Gallery:
Toxicity of leaves and berries of lantana
July 19, 2007 - Hi Mr. Smarty Plants!!!
I live in Columbia, SC and have fallen in love with the Lantana or Lanta plants. I have a lot of them because of their rapid growth. My question is -- in addition to all t...
view the full question and answer
Who ate the Jack-in-the-Pulpit in Ontario?
July 07, 2009 - Something has dug up my clump of Jack-in-the-pulpit at my parents' cottage in the Haliburtons (Ontario, Canada). Leaves, berries and roots are gone. We know we have a black bear who likes our compo...
view the full question and answer
List of plants native to the Abilene, Texas area
September 15, 2011 - Am looking for direction to a complete list of plants native to the Abilene, Taylor County, Texas area (trees, shrubs, grasses, cacti and other plants that grew here before cultivation, eradication or...
view the full question and answer
Raspberries in KS
April 28, 2012 - A friend told me that when he planted golden raspberries next to red and black-raspberries that the golden raspberries did not produce any fruit. He was told that when planted near each other, the go...
view the full question and answer
Wild plum tree failing to bloom from Simonton TX
May 04, 2013 - I have a wild plum tree that has been in the ground for 3 or 4 years and it has not ever flowered. Why? I don't know what kind it is. I dug it up from a friends yard. Her wild plum trees have flowere...
view the full question and answer
![]() |
Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today. Mr. Smarty Plants wants you to be his Facebook friend. Click the Facebook icon to add yourself to Mr. Smarty Plants list of friends. |