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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

Paige, TX
Seeds for native Sandyland Bluebonnet
I live in Bastrop County Texas and would like to plant our native Sandyland Bluebonnet, Lupinus subcarnosus. I have checked most of the native plant supply firms, but can't find this species (except...
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Paige, TX
Grasses for shady acreage in Paige, TX
My family recently bought property in Paige, TX. We thinned out the dense vegetation leaving pines and some oak and juniper. The ground is now bare sand throughout much of the property, except for th...
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Paige, TX
Interested in planting wildflowers in the area of Paige, TX.
Interested in planting wildflowers in the area of Paige, TX.
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Paige/Bastrop, TX
Ground cover for burned acreage in Bastrop, Texas
The fire took 2/3 of the trees on my half acre in Bastrop County. It was mostly wild. What do I plant for ground cover? Do I plant native grass seed in fall? I want to keep it native as possible. ...
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McDade, TX
Bacterial spot in peach tree in McDade TX
I have a Red Globe peach tree which was planted in February 2008. The local agricultural extension agent identified the tree as having Bacterial Spot in November 2008. They recommended copper hydrox...
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McDade, TX
Plants referred to as Hummingbird plants
We have a a plant that is sometimes called a Hummingbird Plant, sometimes a Firecracker plant. I have also seen the name lonicera sempervirens. Are they poisonous? This is a plant, not a vine. T...
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Lincoln, TX
Brown spots on young redbuds in Lincoln TX
I have lined my driveway in Lee County Texas with Red bud trees purchased both in Dripping Springs and in College Station. The 14 trees are of varying ages and heights (planted during the fall and wi...
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Giddings, TX
Keeping cows from eating the garden
I have a flowerbed area outside of our new split-rail fence available for planting, but cattle roam outside the fence also! Do you have any suggestions for plants that cows tend not to eat (unle...
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Giddings, TX
Trees with white blossoms in Crockett, Texas
What are the trees that are blooming just East of Crockett Texas (off of Hwy 21) right now - fairly large trees - multitude of white blooms - almost like a wild plum or pear, but tree seems too large?...
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Bastrop , TX
Plants for Bastrop TX
I'm hoping you can help with this. Recently I have moved to Bastrop TX on what used to be Camp Swift military property. We have looked into planting grass and plants in the yard but discovered we hav...
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Bastrop, TX
Collecting bluebonnet seeds
Greetings, My bluebonnets have bloomed nicely, and are showing a good crop of seed pods. I know that if I wait they will all open and spray the seeds everywhere, but I want to harvest some of the s...
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Bastrop, TX
Possible freeze damage in Wax Myrtle from last winter in Bastrop, TX
Our Wax Myrtle is about 7 yrs old and in good shape until this past winter when we had several very hard freezes. Now several of the large branches are dead and more are dying each month. We have not ...
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bastrop, TX
Need to identify hemp-like plant in Bastrop, TX.
What is the large stalky, hemp-like plant that populates our creek bottoms and ditches here in Central Texas? It has large 5-6 in. lobed leaves, and a fibrous central stalk that gets up to 7 ft tall. ...
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Bastrop, TX
Groundcovers to replace meadow grasses
Are there any groundcovers that are tolerant to local conditions between Bastrop and Elgin and hardy enough to takeover meadow grasses? I have a couple of acres that was a meadow before I moved here e...
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Bastrop, TX
Flowering plants for shady garden in Bastrop
We live in Bastrop, 8 miles west of the Historical district. We have a small flower garden in a shady spot around 25 feet from the back patio of our home. We'd like to find out what native plants, f...
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Bastrop, TX
Pet-friendly plants for ground cover in Bastrop TX
Any pet-friendly plants that can be used for ground-cover in Central Texas?
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Bastrop, TX
Which one is huajillo and which one is guajillo?
Recently I attended a field trip to the Leonard Garden at the Kleberg Institute in Kingsville. I took a picture of a tree that was referred to as Tenaza or huajillo. Later I took another photo of a ...
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Bastrop, TX
Information about giant yellow and black wasps
Regarding a previous question submitted by a person asking about the giant yellow and black wasps..It's a Cicada Killer.I used to see them all the time when I was a kid in Victoria, Tx..But I haven'...
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Bastrop, TX
Dandelions in bluebonnets in Bastrop TX
I have a 20'x60' front yard area where I planted bluebonnets. It has become horrifically inundated with dandelions. How do I eradicate the dandelions while preserving the bluebonnets ? Thanks ...
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Bastrop, TX
Propagation of Texas sage from Bastrop, TX
Am I wasting my time trying to transplant texas sage runners? Any advice?
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Bastrop, TX
Evergreen deer resistant shrub for Texas
I live in Bastrop TX and the deer have decimated the landscaping at the end of our sidewalk. I need to find compact, evergreen shrubs, (flowering would be a bonus), that will do well in shade and gro...
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