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Q. Who is Mr. Smarty Plants?

A: There are those who suspect Wildflower Center volunteers Nan Hampton, Jimmy Mills and Barbara Medford to be the culpable and capable parties. Yet, others think staff members Damon Waitt, Joe Marcus and Philip Hawkins might 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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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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Questions From Near You

Scottsdale, AZ
Non-flowering plants in Scottsdale AZ
I have three plants that are supposed to do well in Arizona but mine are not flowering. The yellow bells and orange jubilee I have get full sun, drip watered 3 x a week for 1 1/2 hrs (at 4am) and are...
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Scottsdale, AZ
Transplanting non-native crape myrtle in Scottsdale AZ
When is the best time to transplant dwarf crape myrtle in Scottsdale AZ?
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Scottsdale, AZ
Information about growing food in Arizona
Edible plants in Arizona: How can I get information on planting and growing food in Scottsdale Arizona?
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Scottsdale, AZ
Evergreen plants for shaded fence in Arizona
I need to place a fence around my front yard (4-5 ft tall), in Arizona. What evergreen flower/plant can you recommend that would grow on this fence? (it would only get about 2-4 hours of sun daily and...
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Scottsdale, AZ
Locating supply for Clematis drummondii in Arizona
I am trying to locate Clematis drummondii for my desert garden in Scottsdale, Arizona. Any help would be appreciated.
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Scottsdale, AZ
Problems with non-native Eugenia in Scottsdale AZ
I have 5 eugenia topiaries in my courtyard in pots..I notice as the days here in Phoenix get hotter and dry (as usual) they are starting to look bad, even though they are under a shelter out of the di...
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scottsdale , AZ
Are Mesquite (Prosopis) pods safe for dogs to eat?
are pods from mesquite trees posionus to dogs if they chew or eat them?
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Mesa, AZ
Problems with non-native citrus trees from Mesa AZ
We have one valencia orange tree and one naval orange tree in our Mesa, AZ yard. Just noticed some oranges on both trees have a 1/4 inch diameter hole through the skin and the orange fruit and skin a...
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Mesa, AZ
Soaptree yucca falling over in Mesa AZ
My soaptree yucca is about 5 ft tall and has fallen over. Does this plant require staking for I thought not, or is something else going on with it?
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Mesa, AZ
Why is my Agave suffering in Mesa, Arizona?
I live in Mesa AZ, and have an agave that we planted 7 years ago. It grew like crazy with hardly any care whatsoever, until I cut off some of the bottom leaves and 'pups' about a month ago. Recently...
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Mesa, AZ
Help for a Transplanted Bougainvillea
I recently planted a bougainvillea in our south-facing front yard. While planting it, we inadvertently severed a large portion of the root system from the plant. What, if anything, can we do to help...
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Mesa, AZ
Problem with Live Oaks in Mesa AZ
I have two Evergreen Live Oaks in central Arizona. One is flourishing and getting new spring leaves from top to bottom. Its trunk is rough, has large grooves, and the spots where I've pruned look li...
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Mesa, AZ
Mosquito problem from Mesa AZ
We have a mosquito problem in our backyard, I think they're grass Mosquitos. I wanted to get lemongrass for a deterrent but both nurseries were out so I opted for rosemary. They're ALL OVER the rose...
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Mesa, AZ
Transplanting large Silverado Sage bushes from Mesa AZ
We just bought a condo with three Silverado Sage, each one is 6-8 ft tall, trained to grow as "trees" with bare branches for the bottom 4 feet or so, and beautiful flowering branches on top. They ar...
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Phoenix, AZ
Deadheading seedless desert willows for continued bloom in Phoenix AZ
We planted two seedless desert willow trees this spring. Both have bloomed nicely but we now have many stems with the spent flowers still on the tree. Your database for this plant says to "Remove spe...
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Phoenix, AZ
Looking for a summer through winter blooming container plant, for Phoenix.
I'm in Phoenix. I'm looking for a perennial plant that will be planted in a container in a commercial setting, that is under a shaded pergola. She wants it to bloom in the winter and if carried int...
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Phoenix, AZ
Privacy hedge plant for Phoenix, Arizona.
Hi, Can you tell me what would be a good plant or shrub to block one side of an unsightly 6ft high wrought iron pool fence, and create some privacy. It would be full sun and the hot temperature of P...
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Phoenix, AZ
Proximity of orange trees in Phoenix AZ
Do I need to plant my orange tree away from my neighbors orange tree?
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Phoenix, AZ
Failure to thrive of one Desert Willow in Phoenix AZ
We planted 4 desert willow trees in the summer and 3 of the 4 are doing excellent, however the last one is not not doing so well, it was the smallest of all and it started out fine but its leaves bega...
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Phoenix, AZ
Plants for erosion control in arid region
In semi arid south west (Phoenix), the drainage is managed by creating incised channels. Typically, the dirt channel can erode with even very low velocities of moving water. To reduce erosion therefor...
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Phoenix, AZ
Effect of epsom salts and gray water on plants
We live in Phoenix where water is a precious commodity. We have decided to use as much of the gray water as we can for watering our garden, shrubs and trees. One of the suggestions we heard about w...
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