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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| Plants for a Shaded Slope in Philadelphia April 17, 2015 I have a small slope along the North side of my house in a suburb of Philadelphia. A small maple tree grows there but most of it gets no sun at all (a large segment is under the tree). I had the soil ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Native Evergreen for Shady Back Yard in IL April 16, 2015 I am looking for a native evergreen to provide bird shelter in my southeast facing small back yard. I would prefer a horizontal juniper but don't know if it could grow in the shade of the 8 or 9 matu... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Shrubs for Central Texas that are Verticillium Resistant April 16, 2015 We need a list of at least a few shrubs in the 6'x3'+ size that are Verticillium Wilt resistant. We have taken out the affected Elaeagnus and would like to replace it with a screen of similar densit... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Need plants to replace Red Tipped Photinias in Bonham, TX April 11, 2015 I have 7 red tipped photinias that had all their leaves eaten last summer by an infestation of grasshoppers. I do mean all. They are or were about 10 years old. Can you tell me if they will grow back ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Pool-Side Plants for Miami April 02, 2015 I am looking for plants, along the line of ti plant cordyline features, to plant around my chlorinated pool area with full South Miami sun. We have a dog therefore they must be non-toxic plants. The... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Need plants to provide a privacy screen in Cedar Creek, TX March 31, 2015 We need to screen out neighbor's house. What can we plant (fast growing tree or hedge) in partial shade? Area is dry in summer, but does get soggy during heavy rain. We live east of Austin in Cedar C... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Screen Tree for Lockhart, TX. March 30, 2015 What is a good screening tree for a ranch in the Lockhart area that won't get much water. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Leucophyllum Resistant to Verticillium Wilt March 25, 2015 I need to know which large shrubs are resistant to verticillium wilt? I believe that a few of our Elaeagnus have succumbed to this disease, but being over 15 years old, I am not positive. I am thinki... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Does Wax Myrtle Have a Taproot? March 25, 2015 Does a wax myrtle have a taproot? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Why did the blossoms on my mountain laurels dry up before they flowered? March 15, 2015 Why did the blossoms on my mountain laurels dry up before they flowered? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Short, Natural Evergreen Shrubs for Texas March 12, 2015 I am looking for small/dwarf evergreen shrubs that, when mature, will be no larger than three feet tall. If possible I would like shrubs that are graceful and more natural looking rather than “regimen... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Companion Plants for Texas Mountain Laurel March 12, 2015 I am building a garden from scratch and need help. I want to plant a Texas mountain laurel on each front section of my house in front of a window, and I also want to use Thumbelina Leigh English laven... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Twenty year old Texas Mountain Laurel isn't blooming. March 09, 2015 I have 20-year-old Texas Mountain Laurel in a fairly poor, clay-type soil. It hasn't bloomed very well the last couple years. Can you recommend a fertilizer to improve the blooms? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Repairing the split trunk of a TX mountain laurel February 28, 2015 I have a fairly large mountain laurel that I just realized has a split down the trunk. Is there anything I can do to save it? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Evergreen shrub for Austin TX February 28, 2015 I am wanting an evergreen shrub 6-8 ft tall to use as a screen in our backyard. Do you have any suggestions? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Shrubs for a Shady Foundation Planting in Texas February 28, 2015 We are looking for foundation shrubs, 2-4' mature height, for a totally shaded area which does receive bright light all day. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Need to control Turk's cap in front yard in Austin, TX February 28, 2015 I have several turks cap in my front yard- they grow well, but they grown huge-high and spread out. My neighbors' are much more compact! how can I keep them in control? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Low Shrubs for Under First Floor Windows in DC February 24, 2015 I'm in search of bushes to plant under the first floor windows of an apartment building I manage. I'm interested in both deterring intruders and in making the grounds more attractive. Any suggestion... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Companion Plants for Rhododendron periclymenoides February 24, 2015 Could you identify companion plants that work well with the pink azalea (Rhododendron periclymenoides)? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Evergreen privacy screen in California February 18, 2015 Hello, My family and I just bought a house in Paradise CA. I want to.plant privacy plants that are native to northern California. I would like the plant to be green all year but drought resistant if... 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 |  | |
| Rust on Amelancier Foliage in PA February 03, 2015 I live in Pennsylvania and have been plagued with a rust on my serviceberry (Amelanchier canadensis) trees over the past few years. I am unable to find very much information on this disease on the we... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Time for pruning wax myrtle in Texas January 31, 2015 We live in Houston. Can we prune back our southern wax myrtle now? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Small evergreen shrubs for part shade in Texas January 31, 2015 Mr. Smarty Pants, I'm, for some reason, at odds with myself about a shrub decision. I have need about 8 ft of hedge-like evergreen shrub(s) that I can maintain around 4ft to go under a window. It... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Sap oozing from trunks of Cherry Laurels in Austin, TX January 24, 2015 I have several mature compact cherry laurels whose leaves are beginning to turn yellow. They are in raised beds, have been properly fertilized, have compost spread around them, and are properly water... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
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