Native Plants
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Smarty Plants Question Topics
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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| topic | question | |
| Plants Needed for a Shaded, Rocky Slope in Alabama July 06, 2016 I live in Alabama where the soil is clay and rocky. I've tried planting on a rocky slope I have but, it's also shaded. Not even Juniper will survive on this slope. I've spent thousands of dollars tryi... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Groundcover for Maryland Slope in Deer Country July 03, 2016 I have a 20-30% grade hill in Maryland. I am looking for a groundcover plant (for example ivy) that I can plant on the hill. I have the following issues: clay soil, deer, full sun, limited water sourc... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Shade Shrubs for a NJ Slope June 27, 2016 I live in central NJ and have a 15' shaded slope behind my home with a creek on the bottom. The slope erodes a little every year and I want to plant native plants on the slope to stop the erosion. Wha... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Low growing annuals for OK shaded slope. January 26, 2016 I have a heavily shaded slope on the north, west, and south side of my home. Can you suggest some low growing annuals (flowering, or not) that would allow me to beautify my property. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Hillside Groundcovers for Pollinating Insects in Wisconsin November 28, 2015 I am looking for native plants for a project around Hudson, Wisconsin. We are to choose native plants to be seeded next spring 2016. They are to be planted on a hillside under and around solar panels ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Erosion Control Shrubs and Groundcovers for Steep NY Wooded Slope November 28, 2015 I need to cover a couple of very steep slopes in upstate New York that are partially wooded and near a brook. The slopes are about 130 feet back from the brook. Someone estimated that there is a coupl... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | | |
| Recommendations for a steep slope in Arlington, VA September 10, 2015 I have a side yard area about 35' long and 10' wide. It is very steep and get full sun. I recently I removed all the weeds down to dirt. I want to do low maintenance plants with mulch. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Connecticut Plants for a Steep Slope September 09, 2015 I am looking for the best plants to retain a steep, dry, fully shaded slope in zone 5, Connecticut. It must be deer resistant. Plant height is not a factor. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Erosion controlling plants for a shady Minnesota lakeside August 11, 2015 I live about 50 yards from a lake and there is a steep embankment. Recently someone decided to cut the trees off the embankment and now the dirt is eroding off the embankment as well as off my back ya... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Stopping erosion on bank of a Florida retention pond July 21, 2015 I live on a retention pond, which has had all vegetation killed by the lake doctor. As a result the bank has eroded so there is a drop off directly to the water rather than a sloping bank. What plan... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Hillside Erosion in Pace FL July 17, 2015 I have a hillside that slopes down about 10 feet to a spring fed pond. The pond drains into Escambia Bay. We have 2 dams with culverts to control the flow of water. Last year during a torrential ra... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Rocky Stream Bank Plants for Dallas, TX July 02, 2015 Need live stake shrubbery or tree ideas for a rocky stream bank prone to high water. Thank you View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Plant for Erosion Control on Wooded Slope in MD May 19, 2015 We are looking for a plant to help with erosion control on a wooded slope next to our drive. The roots of several of the trees are exposed like a shelf, so I think it's a fairly severe problem. We ar... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Wildflowers for floodplain near Denton, TX March 22, 2015 Hello, I am a member of my HOA board and am researching the possibility of filling in our floodplains with wildflowers. Currently the floodplains are grass only and span a few acres. Our goal is to t... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Grasses for a pasture in Hays County, Texas with horses March 20, 2015 I intend to sow grass seed over a few acres of pasture on which I'll have a couple of horses in Driftwood, TX. I'd like to know what variety of seed(s) would be most beneficial to the land - and th... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Groundcover for Road Frontage in NC March 12, 2015 I need a fast growing ground cover or perennial flower for 1,000 feet of road frontage about one acre that will choke out weeds. I do not want to do much ground prep or any ground prep. I do not want... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Native border plants to stop erosion February 18, 2015 I need native border plants to assist in stopping soil erosion due to water run off from rain and the Catawba River. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Phytoremediation using Paspalum vaginatum February 06, 2015 Do you know of any on-going research using Paspalum vaginatum as the prime plant (monoculture) for use in phytoremediation. Utilizing this plant in Vegetated Swales, Spreader Swales, Grassy Swales,... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Plants to prevent creekside erosion in Nacogdoches County, Texas December 09, 2014 I am looking for some advice on plants native to Texas that can help prevent erosion. I own a wooded lot with a creek and would like to consolidate the sides of the creek against potential erosion. I... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| O.K. to grow grass under a live oak? November 26, 2014 Is it a bad idea to plant grass around a mature live oak? We have erosion issues and trying to keep mulch in the beds around the tree groves is a challenge, even with edging. Much of the native dirt... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Erosion Control for Salem IN September 02, 2014 We've recently had a new pond dug. It is on a hill side and has some very steep and tall banks. We were advised that our best chance of keeping soil from eroding was to plant fescue. I'm not thrille... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Plants to grow in sandy shade with steep slope August 14, 2014 I'm a very experienced gardener but I'm completely stumped on this one. We live among the dunes in SW Michigan. Our yard mostly consists of Ammophila breviligulata and Asclepias syriaca bisec... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Native Plants for a Steep Slope in TN July 15, 2014 Hello, I live in Knoxville, TN and have a very steep slope in our backyard. There is a lot of water erosion causing our grass to be covered with red dirt. I would love to try to plant something on thi... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Problem garden strip in Austin May 22, 2014 Currently I live in the west half of a duplex. There is a small strip of dirt about two feet wide between the wall and the sidewalk in the backyard. It faces west, meaning it only gets sunlight duri... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Fast-growing ground cover for creekside May 18, 2014 Hi Mr. Smarty Plants. I live in Austin Texas and am looking for an aggressively spreading ground cover or grass to plant along a small creek on the back of my property in order to help with soil er... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Erosion Control for a Shaded Slope in Aliquippa PA May 07, 2014 What plants. shrubs or trees can I plant to retard soil erosion on a steep shaded hillside in PA View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Ground cover to control hillside erosion in Illinois May 04, 2014 I have seen some other questions regarding native plants for erosion control, but I am looking specifically for plants that will do well on a hill in partial to full shade. I am told the soil in our a... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Shade tolerant plants for erosion from Austin May 03, 2014 I live in Austin and my house backs up to Shoal Creek. I am looking for a native creeping vine or something that will grow on the shaded bank to help prevent erosion. It should be able to tolerate the... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Erosion control in Ohio April 23, 2014 We live on the north side of the Maumee River in Toledo, OH. We are looking to plant something low (3' max) that will stabilize the very steep hill leading down to the river, preventing erosion. Wo... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Erosion controlling Groundcover for Phenix AL March 30, 2014 Hi I am trying to find a grass or ground cover to control erosion on firing range berms which are 1:1 grade on a firing range outside of Phenix City AL. Sandy clay soil, direct sunlight almost all day... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Getting rid of non-native, invasive English Ivy from Davidsonville MD March 19, 2014 Just moved and need to rid the well established Ivy planted on the steep slope area around the back and side of the house as it is taking over the bushes on the top and trees in forested area at botto... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | | |
| Raingarden Plants for Brownsville, TX March 14, 2014 I'm a Landscape Architect in South Texas and I'm implementing raingardens and vegetated swales in my projects. What native plants could be used in these gardens/water runways. They would need to res... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Removing Texas cedar Juniperus ashei from Blanco River banks February 26, 2014 Dear Mr. Smarty Plants, Should cedar trees be removed from our Blanco River banks to prevent them from sucking too much of our precious water before it makes it into the river system? If so, what s... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Ground cover to control erosion in Montgomery County, Texas February 24, 2014 I am looking for some kind of ground cover to control erosion on a north facing slope in Montgomery County, Texas. The area gets very little direct sunlight. I need something that will establish quick... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Reconsideration of previous question from Hays County TX February 21, 2014 QUESTION: Please reconsider this question that I sent to you last week. Our home address is in Bastrop County, but the Blanco River property that we own is in Hays County near Wimberley. Our proper... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Native plants and grasses for river bank from Rosanky TX February 19, 2014 Our property owners association would like to know what native plants/grasses to plant on the Blanco River bank in our river park to help prevent erosion. Some banks are steep and some areas are a gra... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Erosion Solution for Lorton, VA February 07, 2014 We have a steep slope in our common area of our homeowners association. Trees that were planted have died. It is a large area around a pond. What should we plant that will hold the soil? The soil... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Searching for nursery with yellow nutsedge in NC January 27, 2014 I'd like to plant yellow nut sedge as a cover to stop erosion in a lot. Where can I buy yellow nut sedge plants near Kinston, North Carolina? Thank you. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Deer Resistance and Erosion Control for St. Louis County MO January 03, 2014 I am looking for deer and rabbit resistant native plants for erosion control on a steep ravine slope with part sun and part shade in St. Louis County MO. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | | |
| Plant Suggestions for a Partly Sunny Steep Bank in Illinois November 09, 2013 I am looking to plant something on a steep clay bank on our Illinois property. It is on the edge of our dirt road with trees above the bank and is partly sunny. What would work best for that type of a... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Riverbank Plants for Minnesota September 04, 2013 I would like to stablize a steep riverbank slope along the Upper Mississippi in St. Cloud MN. The slopes are almost 1:1. We are using an open cell concrete matt in which we are going to plant native... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Erosion control for shady slope in Kentucky backyard August 28, 2013 I live in northern Kentucky (near Cincinnati). I have an area in my backyard that has slope. It is next to an ash tree and is very shady. Water erosion has washed away the top soil and pretty much no... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | | |
| Erosion control for edge of artificial lake in California August 14, 2013 How about erosion control at the edge of an artificial lake in Southern California? Juncus and ..? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Salt tolerant plants for shade on tidal inlet in NY August 11, 2013 Are there any salt water tolerant grasses or forbs with deep roots that grow in shade? I live on a tidal inlet/canal on Long Island NY. The southern bank has cedars and oaks but the soil is eroding ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Hillside Erosion Control for Gainesville GA August 07, 2013 I have a steep bare hill and the runoff from it is heavy this year. I need help with a fast growing groundcover that will help control erosion and runoff. Planting on the hill is difficult because you... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | | |
| Erosion tolerant plants for shade from Kerrville TX August 06, 2013 We have just cleared a lot of cedar out of a small draw and would like to know the best groundcovers, shrubs, etc. to plant to hold the soil. Deep shade most of the day. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | | |
| Wind and erosion tolerant plants from Austin August 05, 2013 I recently cleared a fire break by removing cedar from around my home in West Austin. I'd like to plant the exposed NW facing slope with native shrubs and trees. Looking for selections that can wit... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Erosion Control with perennials for a shady Dallas bank July 25, 2013 Thank you for your help with turf or perennials on a shaded bank, 4000 sq ft, for the Dallas area that has good roots, grows in semi shade to shade, is on a steep bank so cannot mow, and flowers the l... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Native Streambank Plants for SE Pennsylvania July 18, 2013 I help manage a nature preserve in southeastern Pennsylvania. Along the stream the banks have been beaten down by a large number of visitors for their educational activities such as stream studies. Th... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Ground cover for a slope in San Antonio TX July 02, 2013 Slope growing, no or little irrigation ground cover. The slope is probably greater than 30%. The area is currently a construction road at the base, cut into the hill. To re-establish with a ground cov... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
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