Host an Event Volunteer Join Tickets

Support the plant database you love!

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.

Help us grow by giving to the Plant Database Fund or by becoming a member

Did you know you can access the Native Plant Information Network with your web-enabled smartphone?

Share

Ask Mr. Smarty Plants

Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.

Search Smarty Plants
See a list of all Smarty Plants questions

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!

Need help with plant identification, visit the plant identification page.

 
rate this answer
2 ratings

Sunday - July 14, 2013

From: Spring, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Herbs/Forbs
Title: Is blue porterweed native to North America from Spring TX
Answered by: Barbara Medford

QUESTION:

I recently purchased a blue porterweed (Stachytarpheta jamaicensis) plant from the native plant section of one of our local nurseries. I was surprised when I didn't find it on your list of native plants. Many Google searches show it as a native, while others show it to be an Asian exotic.

ANSWER:

You are correct, our ultimate source for determining nativity is the USDA, and this USDA Plant Profile Map shows Blue Porterweed (Stachytarpheta jamaicensis) as native to the lower 48 states, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands but introduced in Hawaii. This can be attributed to many things, but mostly to the fact that our Native Plant Database is alway a work in progress. We are much more embarrassed when we learn that we have listed a non-native as native than we are when it is the other way around, but still, we appreciate your bringing it to our attention.

The USDA source listed above shows it native to Alabama and Florida, so we are a little curious as to why it was being sold as a native plant in a nursery near Houston. Our whole point in advocating native plants is that there are many multiples of different growing conditions in North America - soils, temperatures, rainfall, even the length of daylight. When we answer a question about a specific plant, we always first check to see where that plant evolved and grows naturally, in order to warn our visitor if we don't think it can survive where they are gardening. 

To that end, we will do a little research on the Internet and you can read some of the information we find to determine if you can expect it to do well in Harris Co., TX.

A lot of user comments from the forum Dave's Garden on this plant. Natives for your neighborhood, a conservation website for south Florida. The Leon Levy Native Plant Database -  oops, that's from the Bahamas. "Native" is in the eye of the beholder.

 

More Herbs/Forbs Questions

Need some help with my Mexican Bush Sage in Rockport, TX.
July 07, 2011 - My Mexican bush sage looks leggy,ratty and sparse. It's planted in full sun and was cut back to the ground in early spring. My soil is sand and I've watered it sparingly as we've had no rain. I'm...
view the full question and answer

Recreating a wildflower meadow, central Texas
July 02, 2013 - We have an acre on our property that has bluebonnets. Unfortunately, it also has other plants that we don't want -Johnson grass, nettles, burrs. We plan to do a controlled burn in the fall and re-...
view the full question and answer

Plants for hanging baskets in Austin
October 06, 2009 - Can you suggest some plants for winter hanging baskets in the Austin, TX area?
view the full question and answer

Can bluebonnet pods be gathered when green in Lockhart, TX
May 02, 2015 - Can bluebonnet seed pods be gathered when green? Will the seed be capable of germinating next season?
view the full question and answer

Effects or insecticide on Monarch butterflies
July 28, 2013 - Thank you for fielding questions about plants!! Our nursery just informed us that their milkweed grower was using imidacloprid in their milkweed production. As a follow up to the question already in...
view the full question and answer

Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today.