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

Questions From Near You

Orion, MI
Cottonwood trees shedding in Orion MI
How long can I plan on my cottonwood trees (wild) shedding long wide cotton strips? This is a first for my trees. Usually it is fluffy small puffs.
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Lake Orion, MI
Insects on non-native euonymus in Lake Orion MI
I had a greenlane euonymus that had a few flies last year but was infested with thousands this year. We ripped it out, it was an 8 year old plant. Do you know why they are attracted to it now?
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Oxford, MI
Invasive spreading weed in Michigan that looks like a small pine tree
I have an invasive spreading weed in my gardens. It has black root system, comes up looking like a small pine tree. The green breaks off when you try to pull it.
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Oxford, MI
Deer Resistant Groundcover for lower Michigan
What ground cover is deer resistant for a sunny location in lower Michigan?
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Oxford, MI
Deer proof ground cover for sunny area in Mississippi
I am looking for a low ground cover that will thrive in a sunny location and is deer proof
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Clarkston, MI
How many native trees in U.S. from Clarkson MI
Does anybody have any numbers on how many native trees there are in the entire United States?
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Clarkston, MI
Wetland Plants for Michigan
I have an area on my wooded property with a wetland marsh area that often puddles with water along the perimeter in the spring. It is very shaded and wet but I wanted to camouflage the perimeter of t...
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Waterford, MI
Winter pruning for yucca in Michigan
I live in SE Michigan and have an outdoor yucca plant that has grown quite large. My father tells me that I can literally cut it down to the ground in the fall and that it will grow back the followin...
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Rochester, MI
Propagation of Aesculus parvifolia from Rochester MI
Aesculus parvifolia. I purchased one plant in spring 2010---it's about 3 ft tall. How might I propagate from this one plant, or should I buy another?
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Ortonville, MI
Identification of plant responsible for thorns in dogs' fur
Do you know of a plant or bush that has very small, very thin triangle shaped thorn? My dogs have been coming in with these in their fur and I want to get rid of the plant/bush they are coming from.
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Bloomfield Hills, MI
Michigan native plants for shady, low traffic area
Hello, I am looking for a recommendation for a Michigan native groundcover. I live adjacent to the Rouge River watershed and want to buy the right thing. The location is shady, infrequently walked ...
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Bloomfield Hills, MI
Fall flowering purple shrub for Bloomfield Hills MI
Need a fall flowering shrub for my temperature zone, preferably purple.
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Ann Arbor/Bloomfield Hills, MI
Plant identification
I was walking in the woods, near Dresden Michigan yesterday, in a deer friendly area, where we came upon a grouping of large, umbrella leaved plants, seemed to be interconnected and only one foot high...
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Romeo, MI
Deer Damage to Pencil Holly in Michigan
I have 5 sky pencil holly bushes that are about 3 feet tall each..they don't grow very fast. I was looking forward to them reaching the 7 feet mark one day, as they are going to serve as a screen be...
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West Bloomfield, MI
Leggy purple coneflower
Last year I planted purple coneflowers and this year when they bloomed they were extremely tall & leggy. I'd like next year to get them to be shorter and fuller. How do I do that & is it something ...
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West Bloomfield, MI
Native plants for Michigan
Hi I was wondering if there are native plant lists for various regions of Michigan.
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White Lake , MI
Native plants for retention pond in Michigan
What native plants would you recommend a for a southeast Michigan retention pond perimeter? Also are there native water plants that help algae control? The pond is about 75x30 feet and ranging from ...
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Utica, MI
Insect pest on non-native dwarf apply tree in Utica MI
I have a dwarf apple tree that bears 5-6 different kinds of apples. I am having trouble with insects; what is a good choice for this and feeding it? Is there also a organic choice?
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Commerce Township, MI
Showy Low Growing Perennial for Michigan
I have been looking for a native perennial that would do well in full sun and moist to dry soil. It would have to be at most 2.5' tall and have showy pink, purple, or red flowers. Is there such a pla...
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Holly, MI
Blocking out noise from pond pump in Holly MI
My neighbor has a motor for his pond pump that faces my backyard--it is extremely loud and irritating after listening to it for 5 hours or more. Is there any type of shrub that I can plant to block o...
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Sterling Heights , MI
Survival of non-native windmill palm in Zone 6b
Will a windmill palm survive a Zone 6b Michigan climate; if so would I have to wrap it up in burlap in wintertime?
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