Native Plants
Q. Who is Mr. Smarty Plants?
A: There are those who suspect Wildflower Center volunteers are the culpable and capable culprits. Yet, others think staff members 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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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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| Willow Tree Early Leaf Fall May 14, 2015 I have a weeping willow tree and it put out great leaves this Spring and looked great, but now here in the middle of May all the leaves are turning yellow and falling off like it does in the fall. So ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Dogwoods Late in Blooming May 14, 2015 We are seeing no evidence of flowers on two dogwoods this year. One usually is in bloom now, the other later on in the spring. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Life span of pin cherry (Prunus pensylvanica May 12, 2015 Do you have any data on the lifespan of pin cherry (Prunus pensylvanica) under urban conditions where is Not subject to seral succession (trees won't be permitted to overtake it)? On the other hand ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Chickasaw Plum suckering potential in Washington DC area May 11, 2015 I have planted some chickasaw plums around the border of my property. My property is surrounded by a wooded area, which then opens into a golfcourse. Is there a chance that my chickasaw plums would... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Watering newly-planted Afghan Pines May 11, 2015 I just planted some Afghan pines in Amarillo, tx (avg. rainfall about 2O in. Per year) What would be the appropriate amount of water and how often would I need to water during this time. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Fruit and nut trees safe for horses. May 11, 2015 My husband and I just moved to Elgin. We have always wanted to grow fruit/nut baring trees but didn't take in to consideration that horses might eat them. We have never had land or horses before, s... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| ID of insects attacking a Mexican Plum in Austin, TX May 11, 2015 I live in south austin and have a young 6' tall mexican plum. For the third year in a row it is getting eaten by small green 'leaf-rolling' worms. The destruction the past 2 years was so bad there ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Power line friendly tree for Houston, TX May 11, 2015 Can you recommend a fast-growing, drought tolerant tree (preferably native) to plant next to a driveway that will provide shade on the southern elevation of a one-story bungalow and also not interfere... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Planting Garry Oak in Kinnikinnick in WA May 09, 2015 I want to plant a Garry Oak tree in my backyard in an area currently covered in kinnikinnick planted by the previous homeowner. The kinnikinnick covers a large area - about 10 feet in diameter. Even... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Evergreen Conifer for Moist, Full Sun Site in Ohio May 09, 2015 We need to find an evergreen conifer, classic holiday-shaped tree that will tolerate a very moist, but not soaking wet, site in full sun. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Shade Loving Plants for Under a Black Walnut Tree in Rochester, NY. May 09, 2015 Please advise on plants that will grow in the shade under a black walnut tree in Rochester, NY. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Repairing Previous Silver Maple Pruning Damage May 09, 2015 I cut a limb off my silver maple wrong and now the trunk is developing a hole. What is the best treatment? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Brownish-gold worm-looking things on loblolly pines May 08, 2015 We have a large loblolly pine that each spring drops thousands of brownish-gold "worm" looking things (about 1/2 to 1" long). Do they have a name and what is their purpose? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Stressed Ashe juniper is dropping needles May 07, 2015 We have a large Ashe juniper tree in our backyard, at least 20 ft tall. This past winter/spring, several limbs have died and it's dropped a ton of leaves (clumps of "needles" really). Is it slowly ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Oak Sucker Reprise May 02, 2015 ----Original Question---- SUNDAY - JULY 06, 2014 Title: Live Oak Suckers Reprise, Austin TX QUESTION: Referring to an entry dated March 11, 2011 about Live Oak suckers - what happened to the su... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Need an inexpensive blooming tree in Venus, TX May 02, 2015 I need a non expensive booming tree for our yard. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Can oak pollen be composted? April 28, 2015 I have quite a few live oaks in my backyard and my flower beds are filled with pollen stuff. Can I compost and mulch over this or is it a good idea to rake as much as I can out first? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Fastest growing shade tree for Austin. April 27, 2015 What is the fastest growing shade tree suitable for Austin? We are anticipating selling or renting our house in two to three years and want a shade tree for a baked full sun area of the yard that will... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Carolina buckthorn and Neem Oil Spray Damage April 27, 2015 It's April, I have a Carolina buckthorn that seemed to be doing well, about 8 feet tall, about 2 years old in part shade. It was putting out new leaves about a month ago and seemed to have infestati... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Looking for non-native Chinese Pistache tree April 23, 2015 Where in the Austin area would be a good place to find a nice sized Chinese Pistache to plant in my yard? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Ground Arizona ash wood suitable for mulch? April 23, 2015 We cut down a 40 year old Arizona ash tree and had the stump ground into mulch. Can we use this mulch in our vegetable garden and flower beds View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Plants for a children's playground April 20, 2015 We have extensive native gardens on our 2 acre property, but my children want a garden of their own with plants they can hide under and that are good for imaginative play. Are there any native plants... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Black Sap from Live Oak in Austin, Texas April 20, 2015 We live in South Austin and our neighbor has several beautiful, enormous Live Oak trees whose canopies hang over into our yard. This past week, they've begun dripping some sort of black sap all over ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Removal of Ashe juniper trees April 19, 2015 I have 15 acres with scattered huge oak and elm trees with tens of thousands of Ashe Juniper (cedar) trees 2” to 10” in diameter growing within the drip zone of the hardwoods. How do I take out the c... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Evergreen Trees for Low Maintenance Screen April 18, 2015 We live in Pacifica, CA and are looking to plant a row of low maintenance trees in our back yard along our fence, that grow to be a maximum of 15' high, that stay green year round. What do you recomm... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
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