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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!

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

Questions From Near You

amherst, MA
Drought-resistant ground cover for Massachusetts
Mr Smarty Plants I am looking for drought resistant,low maintenance ground cover for a LEED certified project in Florence MA. Any suggestions?
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Amherst, MA
Flower color in shooting stars (Dodecatheon meadia)
Shooting Stars (Dodecatheon meadia) come in the colors white, lavender and purple in the eastern U.S. Is this just genetic variability or does soil chemistry affect the flower color?
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Florence, MA
Allelopathy in Sassafras albidum
Sassafras albidum description says "Sassafras is allelopathic and can discourage the growth of certain other plants within its root zone." My question is: WHICH plants are susce...
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Belchertown, MA
Trumpet creeper with ants in Belchertown MA
My Campsis Vine is having one of the maximum blossom years it gets after a good pruning. This year, I have black carpenter ants on the blossoms and the flowers are rotting from the edges down on some...
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Belchertown, MA
Shallow Rooted Wildflowers for MA
Do you have any suggestions for wildflowers that would be safe to grow on a capped landfill site? They would need to have roots no deeper than 24 inches.
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Wendell, MA
Identifying a plant similar to sarsaparilla
I am trying to identify a plant that looks very similar to sasparilla, but has a ring of blue berries at the end of a long stalk, and the plant itself is spreading, not an isolated herb like sasparill...
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Greenfield, MA
Brown leaf problem with herbaceous blooming plants from Greenfield MA
I have 3 plants cimicifuga brunette and lots of astile planted near each other. Suddenly the edges of leaves have turned brown and shriveled and spread to entire plant, all of them. It has not been ...
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Greenfield, MA
Plant identification
I have a plant growing in my yard that I would like to know what it is. It has two very different leaf types on the same plant. One set of leaves is thick and oval in shape, the others look very much ...
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Greenfield, MA
What to Plant Now feature?
Would y'all at all consider having a "What To Plant Now" section" and/or a "What's Blooming Now" one. You are very generous with your information, but if I wanted to "go native", it seems tha...
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Springfield, MA
Plant identification from Springfield MA
We have a house next to us that is vacant. The lawn has not been mowed in months. a tall flower has grown amongst the grass and weeds. It is about 3 to 4 feet tall green stem and the flower is about 2...
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Springfield, MA
Locating Rosa rugosa for Massachusetts
There is a shrub that grows out on the Cape especially at the beach. I have always called it Beach Rose and I have heard other people call it a Beach Plum. However, the most recent picture of a Beac...
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Athol, MA
Keeping bonsai plants alive in Athol MA
For the past 12 years I have raised bonsai plants in AL and FL, but recently moved back to central MA. My collections consists of Japanese maples, ginkos, bald cypress and ficus benjamina. I have a ...
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Westfield, MA
Identification of tree or shrub in Massachusetts
Good morning, We are in Zone 5 and have a tree/shrub I cannot identify in the backyard of our new home. Tall (6')and growing, green stems,and when the stems are broken the branches smell of lemon o...
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Longmeadow, MA
Plants available for viewing in Wildflower Center in October
We are thinking of bringing a group to visit the Wildflower Center during the weekend of my son's wedding in Austin in early October. Will there be much to see at the garden at that time of year? ...
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Brookfield, MA
slope stabilization in Massachusetts
My family and I recently put in a 120 x 100 horseback riding ring. It had to be built up in the back and, as a result, there is a 10 foot slope which could use stabilization. What plants native to Mas...
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Southwick, MA
Identification of blue wildflower on roadsides in Massachusetts
What is the blue wildflower planted on roadsides and highways in Massachusetts?
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Hubbardston, MA
Survivability of Texas wildflower seeds in Zone 5A or 5B
What are the recommended hardiness zones for Texas wildflowers? Could these seeds survive in a 5A and 5B climate? If so, when would be the correct time to plant seeds for zone 5A/5B?
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Templeton, MA
Plant identification
We found this plant or something or other in our yard, in the area we found it usually stays wet and it was behind a old tree that was done. It has three big green leaves with a white stem that kind ...
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Winchendon, MA
Caterpillars on Milkweed in MA
I have found every year a black/red caterpillars on my milkweed. They eat everything! I have never been able to find out what they are or how to get rid of them.
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Winchendon, MA
Non-native, invasive Datura sprouting from compost
Hi, I have a plant growing out of some compost we purchased this spring and no one can tell me what it is. It's about 4 ft. tall, the stem is maroon like rhubarb and it produces 4-5 in. tubular lig...
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East Granby, CT
Invasive native wild onions in East Granby CT
I have wild onions which have become extremely invasive. I have no idea how to get rid of them, and this year they seem to have taken over my entire flower bed. I tried pulling the bulbs out for sever...
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