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
Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.
rate this answer
Saturday - July 27, 2013
From: Seattle, WA
Region: Northwest
Topic: Groundcovers, Shade Tolerant
Title: Growing non-vascular moss as a lawn from Seattle WA
Answered by:
QUESTION:
I have lots of moss in my back yard. How can I encourage it to grow over the whole yard?ANSWER:
The thing is, Mr. Smarty Plants limits himself to answering questions on vascular plants native to North America. We have so many questions on native vascular plants, we would never even come close to keeping up if we also answered questions on non-vascular plants like mosses or non-native plants such as Banksia grossa (native to Australia).
From wacona.com, this article Plant Groups explains the differences between vascular plants (our specialty) and non-vascular plants (mosses, algae). From Moss Acres, here is information on Growing Moss. From what we can see, to grow moss as a lawn, you need damp conditions and a whole lot of shade.
More Groundcovers Questions
Plants for wet soils in North Carolina
October 03, 2009 - I'm looking for evergreen plants (shrubs or ground cover)that will tolerate wet conditions for the zone 8 area of North Carolina. The local garden centers here do not stock these types of plants, eve...
view the full question and answer
Native groundcover for central California
September 02, 2009 - In Modesto, CA. Hot summers, cold winters. Need a low ground cover for area next to driveway approx. 5ft X 14ft. that stays green all year round. I did have grass there but neigbors lawn is loaded wit...
view the full question and answer
Erosion Control in Bartlesville OK
May 10, 2012 - What kind of plants can we use to stop erosion and loss of bank on a creek that is mostly shaded? Is there any free advice/plants for people that are losing land due to water levels rising/dropping?
view the full question and answer
Silver ponyfoot becoming invasive in College Station TX
May 08, 2013 - How can I control or get rid of an established Dichondra groundcover? I bought a few plants of D. argentea from your sale a few years ago, and in that time they've done really well in the area I plan...
view the full question and answer
Native groundcover for sun in East Texas
June 09, 2008 - I am hoping you can advise me on a native, flowering, fast growing groundcover that would thrive in full sun, with some shady areas under a couple camellia trees. I live in Nacogdoches and have sandy...
view the full question and answer
| Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today. |