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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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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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Please forgive us, but Mr. Smarty Plants has been overwhelmed by a flood of mail and must take a break for awhile to catch up. We hope to be accepting new questions again soon. Thank you!

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Friday - April 06, 2012

From: Midland, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Non-Natives, Trees
Title: Do non-native globe willows have a taproot from Midland TX
Answered by: Barbara Medford

QUESTION:

Do globe willows have a tap root?

ANSWER:

Over time, we have received LOTS of questions about globe willows. The answer to your question is "no." We assume you were asking with thoughts of planting one close to a building or pavement. Trees do not have true taproots. A carrot is a taproot, but it isn't required to stand up straight in the air for 50 feet.

Please read this previous Mr. Smarty Plants question. We can tell you we don't like it any more now than we did then. Note the remarks about "aggressive roots."

 

 

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