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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| topic | question | |
| Care of a sedum indoors December 16, 2007 I have a coworker who has trusted her Sedum Burrito plant into my care because it is not doing well in her office. It appears to need repotting, as it is very crowded in the pot it came in and is dif... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Care of non-native house plant December 09, 2007 Please let me know how to keep a dieffenbachia plant healthy and growing. I notice some leaves turn yellow. I water them once a week and keep it on the windowsill with some sunlight. Should I be do... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Division of impatiens grown in a pot December 08, 2007 I have an impatient and it is growing out of the pot. I was wondering if it were possible to divide it somehow and have two medium size plants. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Plants for full-sun landscape November 20, 2007 I live in a very rocky area just outside of Fort Worth, TX. It's taken me all spring, summer & now I'm going into the fall, to landscape just 30 feet in front of my house. The front of the house get... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Indoor pot plants November 20, 2007 I just moved into a studio apt. where a lot of heat is provided. Do you have a listing of house plants suitable for warm apartments? I have four windows, all with indirect sunlight. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Flowering of pineapple guavas November 06, 2007 I have two pineapple guavas in their second year of planting. Both have grown extremely well, but have not flowered. I live in zone 9 near the Gulf and they receive normal irrigation. Do they take ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Transplanting care of Mayten tree (Maytenus sp.) November 06, 2007 I planted a Mayten tree 2 years ago. It's about 8 feet tall. The trunk is about 1-1/2 or 2" in diameter. The earth around it sunk and now there is a "bowl" that fills with water in the rain. I... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Cross pollination of orange and crapemyrtle November 05, 2007 I have a crapemyrtle tree growing 3 feet from a navel orange tree. This summer a shoot grew from the ground 5 inches from the orange tree. The shoot looks just like the orange tree but the leaves were... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Non-native Gingko biloba in Austin October 22, 2007 Does a Ginkgo biloba tree grow easily in the Austin area? Does it take extra care to keep it alive? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Care of non-native house plant October 20, 2007 I have bought a 7 foot bird of paradise indoor plant, and have a decorative pot to place it into. The plant will remain in its plastic pot, will have a liner inside decorative pot, and decorative moss... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Care for non-native indoor plants October 20, 2007 My cousin in Pa. asked me to see how to care for 2 plants in the winter. The first is a Voo Doo Lily and the second is a Bengal Tiger plant. If you would please help I would be able to pass it along... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Information about Lotus berthelotte, non-native plant October 19, 2007 I have a plant marker for a plant called LOTUS Berthlotti. I am looking for how to take care of it, but when I type the name in any search engine I get no results! the best way for me to describe th... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Care of non-native house plant, Pachira aquatica October 14, 2007 Mr. Smarty Plants, I have just bought a miniature money tree. I would like to plant it on a metal like decorative pot. What advice would you give me how to prevent the plant from getting any metal re... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Non-native poinsettia care October 07, 2007 I have a poinsettia that I have nursed from last Christmas. It is in big pot and looks really good. I'm trying to make it bloom. I have it out front with a sw exposure. I'm afraid of too much sun... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Removing St. Augustine, replacing with native plants October 06, 2007 Hello Mr. Smarty Plants, always excited to talk to the Green Guru himself. I've recently purchased a house in South Austin and am interested in establishing a small, 500+ sq ft, prairie grass and wi... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Fruiting of non-native fig trees September 30, 2007 Regarding a Fig Tree that I have, it's about 3yrs old. Last year it gave us about a handful of figs and they were good. This year the small tree is full of figs and they remain green. This summer I h... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Seeking information on Crateeva asiatica, non-native herbal medicine September 29, 2007 Dear Mr. Smarty Plants, I had a look at your website in hope of finding information about the plant Crateeva asiatica. Could you kindly help me to locate the information for the same? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Plectranthus (native of South Africa) winter care and insects September 26, 2007 I was recently given a beautiful plant which is now in a pot in my yard. I live in Rochester, NY and need to know what to do with this plant in the fall. The plant is 'Mona Lavender' Plectranthus p... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Weed prevention in vegetable gardens September 26, 2007 Mr.Smarty Plants - I know this isn't your area, but we have a vegetable garden that has been plagued by summertime weeds. Do you have a recommendation for a control plan we could implement during t... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Care of non-native house plant, probably Coleus September 16, 2007 What would cause the new leaves of a house plant to be solid green? When I bought it, the original leaves were almost like a "tie-dye" fabric (green,yellow,orange, and red). View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Care of desert willows September 10, 2007 We have three desert willows. Two are doing well, but the third, which was planted at the same time as the others, is about 1/3 the size of the other two, the foliage is thin, and the leaves have dry... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Removal of invasive non-native Chinese wisteria September 10, 2007 I am going to be removing my ubiquitous chinese wisteria very soon (the method I'm going to use is undetermined). If I decide to use Round-up on the cut-stem (which may take more than one application... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Removal and disposal of very invasive non-native water hyacinth September 07, 2007 I was given some Eichhornia crassipes, don't know how to care for them. Do you put them in some potting soil then put the pot in water? When do they bloom? Can they stay in the water during winter in... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Care of Jade plant September 06, 2007 Hi there, I have a question and really appreciate your time helping me regarding my plant. I bought a Jade plant; 35 yr. old ; very thick stems and healthy at the time of purchase from a very si... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Native alternatives for Japanese maple September 05, 2007 Hi, I am a landscaper trying to create a landscape in a shaded area with no sun. The person likes a Acer palmatum, but I am not sure it will grow there. We live in South Lake Tahoe. So I know of some ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Hurricane resistant alternatives to crape myrtle September 02, 2007 Are there any native small to medium trees (15-25 ft) to use instead of crapemyrtles (Lagerstroemia indica)? Crapemyrtles come in many colors and bend with hurricane winds instead of snapping or uproo... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Oak leaf fall causing ivy damage August 28, 2007 I read the A/Q in the Austin American-Statesman Saturday, August 25, regarding the leaves falling now from the live oaks. I am experiencing the same thing, but it is the leaves of my post oaks that a... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Distribution of Non-Native Royal Empress Tree August 23, 2007 I was wondering if you could give me the statistics for the Royal Empress Tree in the Long Island area. I have two and have read numerous articles online regarding them being invasive through the root... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Identification of non-native wildflower August 20, 2007 I am a painter and I need your help. When I was in Pecatonica, Illinois recently I saw a very beautiful blue colored wildflower. I was amazed by its beauty but didn't have a camera with me to take a ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Deadheading cannas and geraniums August 17, 2007 I'm new to gardening. Your help would be appreciated. 1) I think I read that canna flowers can be deadheaded so they will continue to bloom throughout the summer. What part is actually taken off? ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Non-native invasive creeping fig on oak tree August 15, 2007 I have a creeping fig in a pot that sits next to an oak tree. It took to the tree as a trellis and looks beautiful. My question is: is it doing the tree any harm? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Disposal of non-native invasive clerodendron August 15, 2007 What do you do about clerodendron that is spreading like wildfire. A friend gave me one plant before I was acquainted with invasives!! View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Care for non-native Basil August 14, 2007 One of my Basil plants has leaves that are curling (shriveling.) I see no insects on any of the leaves. The plant next to this one is growing beautifully. Both are in large pots and are in the sun.... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Disposal of non-native invasive Houttuynia cordata August 08, 2007 I am a homeower in The Woodlands with a very difficult problem in my butterfly garden. I have an impossibly invasive weed that I cannot get rid of -- so much so that I'm thinking of just paving ov... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Correct spelling of Passiflora caerulea August 07, 2007 What is correct, passiflora coerulea or caerulea ? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Bloom color change in Choctaw Crape Myrtle July 30, 2007 In 2006 my wife bought a Choctaw Crape Myrtle from a local nursery. It had a tag from Greenleaf Nursery and had several blooms in the "correct" pink color. The plant was 5-6 ft tall. It has grown... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Information on non-native Knock Out Rose July 30, 2007 I am trying to find out some information about a Knock Out Rose. I dont know the scientific name for it. I have been to different web sites to find pictures, size etc. and can find nothing. Any help ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Non-fruiting squash July 25, 2007 With all this rain in Dallas why would our Zuchinni and Yellow squash be beautiful and green but not produce any squash? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Identification of non-native Viburnum lantana July 23, 2007 Could you tell me what this plant is? I have no idea! Vib Iantana Mohican - this is all the info. I have, other than it can grow in the mid-west. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Recovery of damaged fuchsia plant in hanging basket July 23, 2007 I had a beautiful fuchsia plant hanging on my porch. The hanger gave way and the plant fell straight down into another flower bed. The fuchsia seemed ok. I put it back in the pot put up new strong ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Encouraging bloom on non-native Batwing Erythrina July 18, 2007 Hi! I have a Batwing Erythrina in the ground next to my driveway in full sun in Houston. It's nine years old and is about twenty feet tall, but it does not bloom. What can I do? Thanks for your s... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Care of Rio Grande Wild Petunia July 17, 2007 I have bought the Rio Grande Wild Petunia, Ruellia davisiorum. How should I look after it? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Recovery from transplant shock for bougainvillea July 12, 2007 I live outside of Phoenix. I just bought a bougainvillea in a large pot. It was doing nicely until I brought it home. I placed it in a sunny spot in my front yard inside of a large volcanic rock that ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Care of Dracaena fragrans, cultivar July 09, 2007 I just recently purchased a tree which I was told was called a Dracaena or also corn plant. I can not seem to find a site that will inform me on how to take care of this tree. If you can please let ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Care of Passiflora incarnata or Passiflora coccinea July 04, 2007 Hi- I have two passionflowers, one red, one purple. I live in upstate NY. They grow very well up onto trellises, however, they have stopped producing flowers. Both are planted in pots (fairly large)... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Non-native Ornithogalum longibracteatum (Pregnant Onion) June 27, 2007 Dear Sir, I have a plant called a Pregnant Onion. It looks like an onion and it has babies develop on its body and the surface peals off like an onion. It's leaves grow to about a yard long and th... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Plants native to South Florida and the Caribbean June 22, 2007 What are the plants native to South Florida and the Caribbean? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Growing conditions for non-native Thlaspi caerulescens June 19, 2007 I want to know what is the best condition for growing Thlaspi caerulescens and what is its life span. Thanks View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Invasiveness of non-native Asian jasmine June 18, 2007 I have a lot of Asian Jasmine planted as groundcover in various beds. The last year or so it has become unruly and is now invading my St. Augustine, working its way into the lawn itself. Is there an... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Karoo rose June 15, 2007 Where would the Adenium obesum/desert rose/Karoo rose pictured in the Austin American-Statesman's Gardening section on 06/09/07 be available for purchase in or near the Taylor, Texas (76574) area? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
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