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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

Ackerman, MS
Non-native Indian Hawthorn and Abelia resistance to deer from Ackerman MS
I recently landscaped my yard. I have a large variety of bushes and trees. They have been planted for about a month. Yesterday, while out in the yard, I noticed that about half of my Indian hawthorn...
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Sturgis, MS
Blocking dust from a road in Sturgis MS
Please let me know what Trees/shrubs will help block dust from dirt road.
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Starkville, MS
How Do Persimmons Breed - Starkville, MS
Thank you for your earlier response about the genders of native persimmon trees. We have two, a much larger one that has borne fruit for years and years and a smaller one that I'd just assumed was m...
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Starkville, MS
Non-native Moth Mullein as a garden plant from Starksville MS
I collected seeds from a beautiful Moth Mullein growing in a lot which will soon be bulldozed. Would I regret sowing them in the back of a sunny perennial bed this fall. These are from the white-pin...
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Starkville, MS
Native plants for cutting garden in Starkville MS
I would like to know the native plants to put in a cutting garden.
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Grenada, MS
Why is my Weeping Fig crying leaves?
I have a weeping fig that I bought Memorial day in Birmingham, Al. It has 8 or 9 trunks growing altogether. It sits on a porch with eastern exposure, only about 2 hours of sun. It has been losing l...
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Amory , MS
Failure to thrive of closet plant
I have a closet plant that is old and was doing fine and then started having droopy leaves. It needed to be in a larger pot so I transplanted into a larger pot with new potting soil. It continues to...
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Newton, MS
Plant identification
I need to identify a weed-like plant ~1 ft high with thick stems, wide leaves ending in a single point and bluish-purple tear shaped petals arranged three in a triangle.
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Meridian, MS
Non-native Indian Hawthorn leaves yellowing
I live in Mississippi. My Indian Hawthorn's leaves are not as green as they were when I purchased the plant, and several are turning yellow with brown spots on them. What should I do?
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Tupelo, MS
Grasses for moist, steep hillside in Tupelo MS
I have a very steep bank that I have pampas grass planted in spots. It must be a natural spring in the bank because it stays very wet and runs into the street below. Can you suggest something to pla...
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Tupelo, MS
Will desert willow (Chlopsis linearis) grow in N. E. Mississippi
I am located in N.E. Mississippi. A friend of mine sent me a few desert willow seeds. I have about 5 plants growing now that are about 6 inches tall. I was wanting to know first of all, is it possi...
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Toomsuba, MS
Transplanting a young lilac
This past spring I planted a hybrid lilac in the ground. The weather here has started to get cold, and much more so at night. Also, the temperatures go from warm to cold and back again as if unsure wh...
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oxford, MS
Rain Garden plant for N. Mississippi
Rain Garden Plants for North Mississippi/Mid-South Region. I wish the search parameters included plants which tolerate seasonal flooding and droughts, so that each state might search for its own r...
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Madison, MS
Non-blooming parsley hawthorn in Madison MS
I have a parsley hawthorn that has never bloomed. It is thriving in a low area under tall pines. It gets filtered sun most of the day with more direct sun in late afternoon. I don't know the age but...
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Madison, MS
Edibility of peppervine berries from Madison MS
I am following up on a question I've posed to many well experienced foragers and naturalists regarding the pepper vine plant or Ampelopsis arbor. There are many conflicting stories regarding the edib...
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Eutaw, AL
Leaves turning yellow on Banana Shrub in Eutaw. AL
We have a very large (about 12' tall), very old (probably planted in the early 1900s) Banana Shrub in our front yard. It was very healthy until last year when its leaves began turning yellow and fal...
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Flora, MS
Lists of native plants in Rome, Italy area
Do you know anywhere that I can find a list of native plants in Italy, especially in the Rome area.
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Jackson, MS
Southern Live Oak Authority for Jackson MS
Who are the foremost authorities on Southern Live Oaks? May need expert testimony to oppose cutting of 50 year-old live oaks in boulevard of Riverside Drive in Jackson, MS
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Jackson, MS
Year-round wildflower display in Mississippi
I live in central Mississippi and I'm interested in transforming a 2,000 sq. ft. turf area of my yard into a showy wildflower exhibit that will bloom from now(July) until winter and even possibly thr...
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Jackson, MS
Cold hardiness zones for plants from Jackson MS
How to search the plant database by cold-hardiness zone? Is it possible to do combination search by zone (not just state?) With the information provided with plant, I do not see the zone listed. Ma...
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Cleveland, MS
How to care for non-native gardenia
My gardenia is about 20 years old about 5 feet tall and for the first time is leggy looking this year, not too many leaves and they don't look real healthy. Do I need to cut it back some. Last year...
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