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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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Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.

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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

Bowie, TX
Plants to stop erosion on sandy slope in north central Texas
We have severe erosion problems that lead to a deep ravine. There are deer in the area and the soil is sandy on a slope. What would be the best long term solution to stop or control this erosion. Th...
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Bowie, TX
Information on green roof demonstration site at Wildflower Center
I visited your green roof demonstration site and am interested in putting a green roof on a structure. There seemed to be at least two layers of growing medium in the planters; one layer looked like r...
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Selma, TX
Texas fan ash draining sap in Selma TX
I have a 3-year-old Texas Fan Ash tree that has recently begun to drain sap. Should I be concerned? If yes, what can I do to save the tree? Thank You!!
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Bridgeport, TX
Vine to cover fence line in Bridgeport, Texas
We are looking for a year round vine that will cover our fence line. Flowering and non-flowering.
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Decatur, TX
Planting time, either by acorn or container grown tree, of Shumard red oak
Hello, I have a question on when is the best time to plant shumard red oak. I live in Zone 7. thank you
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Decatur, TX
Native vine for shade on west side in Texas
I have just put in a trellis to cover the west side of my house for shade. What would be the best native vine to put their for quick growth. I plan on putting a rose (Fortunia) but can't do that till...
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Decatur, TX
Smarty Plants on wildflower meadow gardening
My local elementary school in Decatur, Texas (north central) has an open field of wonderful wildflowers in front of it. This year, they were mowed before the flowers went to seed. What is a good rul...
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Runaway Bay, TX
Ground cover for a sunny hillside in TX
For many years I have had two beds of English Ivy under medium size pine trees. Home is on a hillside, moderately rocky. Last Spring my yardman persuaded me to severely trim lower limbs of the pines t...
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PARADISE, TX
Encouraging native grasses to flourish
We have been trying to restore the yard around the house with native grasses and forbs for the last two years. The soil is clay and nothing seems to grow. We have distributed 5 truck loads of mulch, p...
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Paradise, TX
Grafting Pecan Trees
I have planted two pecan nuts and now they are about 4 feet tall trees, they have not been grafted but can I graft one of the trees to the other and vice versa and expect pecans from then, they are he...
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Valley View, TX
North-central Texas shrubs for part-shade
I need a shrub that will be OK in shade (2-3 hrs a day max.), in fairly well-drained soil, will grow to around 8 ft. tall and 4-6 wide, for the region between Denton and Gainesville. If it flowers, al...
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Burneyville , OK
Opinion of 5 best native garden plants in Oklahoma from Burneyville OK
What would you say are the 3 to 5 BEST native garden plants for south central Oklahoma?
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Poolville, TX
New gardener on lawn for Poolville TX
I have never had the opportunity to have a nice yard until recently when I got married. My husband loves a nice yard and we have worked very hard and put in hours of work. We are learning by trial a...
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Krum, TX
Planting a Texas Persimmon in rocky soil in Krum TX
I have recently purchased a 10 gallon Texas Persimmon plant that I want to put as a highlight plant in my yard. According to the nursery, it has been in the pot for 2 years. I have been "blessed(or...
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Krum, TX
Identification of red and black insects on Yucca
I have little red and black insects on my soft leaf yucca and I don't know what they are or how to get rid of them. They make the leaves rusty looking. Do you have any idea what they are or how I can...
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Rhome, TX
Plant identification
I am trying to identify a wild flowering plant. It grows in pastures near Rhome Texas. How can I email a digital photo to you to look at it??
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Sanger, TX
Planting Muhlenbergia capillaris (Gulf muhly)
Is it too late to plant Gulf Muhly seed in North Texas (October)?
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Gainesville, TX
Problems with Shumard Oaks and Crepe Myrtle in Cooke Co. TX
I have a Shumard Oak Tree that has been in the ground approx. ten years. It has done great, even passing up some of my older Shumards. In August it began to lose its leaves at an alarming rate. They a...
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Ponder, TX
Does goldenball leadtree (Leucaena retusa) have thorns?
I have a plant that I am told is a native Texas plant, but the person I got it from could not remember its name. They said it was very hardy and drought tolerant. It looks a little like goldenball lea...
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Ponder, TX
Problems with Escarpment black cherry from Ponder TX
I have an escarpment black cherry that is about three years old and about 9 feet tall. It was healthy until this last summer when its began to bark peel and sap run out at the base of the tree. The af...
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Ponder, TX
Trees that are non-toxic for horses
I live in Ponder, Tx. We have some acreage and horses and wish to plant trees to afford some shade for the horses. Can you tell me what trees are toxic to horses.
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