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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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Questions From Near You

Iron Station, NC
Mulching vegetables with straw
I have a small garden with 4 different veggies, tomatoes, hot peppers, squash & cucumbers. which plants is it OK to put straw under? which plants will straw hurt the stalks or other possibilities? tha...
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Lincolnton, NC
Source of Calycanthus floridus in Lincolnton NC
I have been trying to find a Calycanthus Floridus, I want to plant them around the house, but have had no luck. I live in Lincolnton, NC do you know of any place I can find them?
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Denver, NC
Pruning a non-native Hinoki cypress from Denver NC
Hi! Our painters have asked that we trim the Golden Hinoki Cypress back from the house. The tree is about 20' tall, beautiful and healthy. Since it is July and therefore, HOT! I'm wondering how t...
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Cherryville, NC
Obtaining Agave parryi in Cherryville NC
I live in western North Carolina and I had a friend that had a Agave parryi that bloomed about 1 year ago and of course it died. Since i saw the beautiful agave I have wanted one, but no one in my are...
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Corneilius, NC
Need a ground cover to stop erosion on a slope next to a pond.
I have a large natural pond. One side has a steep slope. I need a attractive,low/no maintenance, evergreen? plant to stop the erosion into the pond. Cornelius/charlotte nc
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Huntersville, NC
Getting rid of poison ivy, poison oak and poison sumac
How can I rid my yard of poison ivy, poison oak and poison sumac? I have tried roundup, poison ivy roundup and even a clorox solution and nothing seems to kill it, I keep seeing it come up. Any help ...
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Mooresville, NC
Native water plants for bio-retention pond in North Carolina
I am looking for North Carolina native plants that can take part shade and very wet conditions (bioretention pond environment). Any suggestions?
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Mooresville, NC
Plants for wet soils in North Carolina
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...
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charlotte , NC
Tall perennials for a sunny North Carolina border
I need border plants for in front of a picket fence along front sidewalk. Space is only approx 1'6" wide and widening is not an option. So far I have daylilies, cannas, Mexican petunias, daisies, i...
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Clover, SC
What plants to put under an oak tree in Clover SC
I have a 70 year old oak tree in my backyard and have tried to grow grass out from it with no success. I'd like to just plant some shrubs and make it a natural area now, but need advice on what I ca...
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Charlotte, NC
Identification of vine in North Carolina
How can I send a picture to you of a vine that I can't seem to identify?
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Charlotte, NC
Cutting Gardens from Charlotte, NC
I want to plant a year-round picking garden for flowers to bring into my home. I want to look at landscape plans in lieu of throwing down wildflower seeds. Can you suggest a few websites for ideas?
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Charlotte, NC
Plants for a lakeside bank in NC
Our association is looking to plant a huge sloped area that runs down to Lake Wylie. We want to plant something that is good for erosion and that does not grow too tall so that we keep our view of th...
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Charlotte, NC
Plants for creek bank in North Carolina
I would like a list of plant options to plant on an almost vertical creek bank in some location in Charlotte, NC. The creek runs through a 300 acre basin, maybe 3 or 4' high banks and I have never se...
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Charlotte, NC
Native plants for restoring a North Carolina pond site
I reconstructed the dam to a 50 year old cattle pond at our high-end residential development in Charlotte, NC. There are many large mature trees around the pond but also some good sun exposure at two ...
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Charlotte, NC
Plants to put beside driveway
I have a 100 foot dying grassy side to my driveway. It is about 5 foot wide. What could I plant that would not look like soldiers but be at least 4 foot high and I could use mulch or needles to beauti...
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Charlotte, NC
Privacy Screen Tree for Patio in NC
What is a good tree to plant in front of a brick wall/fence to provide privacy and not compromise the structural integrity of the wall? The brick fence is my neighbors but I need privacy as they can s...
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Charlotte, NC
Native flowers and plants for meadow in North Carolina
I live in Rock Hill, SC, just south of Charlotte, NC. I would like to have recommendations for planting native flowers and plants in a small meadow in my backyard. Do you have any suggestions or kno...
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Charlotte, NC
Native border plants to stop erosion
I need native border plants to assist in stopping soil erosion due to water run off from rain and the Catawba River.
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Charlotte, NC
Shrubs meeting homeowners assoc. requirements in Charlotte NC
Dear Mr. Smarty Plants, I am doing my darndest to establish a bird and bee friendly patch of earth here in Charlotte, NC, but I'm having a terrible time finding a shrub that matches my homeowners...
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Charlotte, NC
Shade trees for NC
What fast growing non invasive tree would be good to plant in a sub-division that could possibly shade my 2 story house? I would like it to have a tap root system so that it is strong in windy condit...
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