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.
Help us grow by giving to the Plant Database Fund or by becoming a member
Did you know you can access the Native Plant Information Network with your web-enabled smartphone?
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.
Search Smarty Plants
| topic | question | |
| Drought resistant plants or flowering shrubs with pink flowers September 15, 2006 I need a hardy, drought resistant flower or flowering shrub for my renter, who likes pink flowers. She doesn't remember to water and most likely won't do any weeding. Area is Corinth, TX. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Identification of Tacoma stans or Yellow Bells September 05, 2006 We have seen a plant along the freeway here in Round Rock...beautiful greens leaves and the most amazing yellow flowers. Someone told us it was an esperanza plant and drought tolerate; however, I can... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Replacement of barberry hedge with native, bird-friendly plants August 30, 2006 I am looking to replace an existing barberry hedge with a deciduous hedge, using a plant that is native to the northeast. I am in zone 6. The site is sun/part sun with decent drainage. The mature si... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Protecting hibiscus from cold in Eastern Washington State July 28, 2006 I recently purchased a Hibiscus Brilliant Red. I planted it in an area of my garden that will give it full sun for most of the day. In the Pacific Northwest where I live (Eastern Washington) it can ge... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Moisture as trigger for Cenizo bloom July 17, 2006 Does the cenizo bloom because it has had water on its leaves and stems? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Blooming of native swamp azalea in New York July 04, 2006 I have a native swamp azalea, very healthy, but it has never bloomed. Do you know why or how I could get it to bloom? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Pruning of Hamelia patens, Firebush June 23, 2006 I have a Hamelia Patens (Fire Bush) it says it will grow to 12 feet high and 5-6 feet across. Can I keep pruning it to about 5 feet without damaging the shrub? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Native Texas Hill Country nitrogen-fixing plants June 07, 2006 Please help me find a listing of native (TX Hill Country) nitrogen-fixing plants. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Hill Country natives for a hedge June 01, 2006 Can you recommend a "hedge type" bush to use in lieu of a fence along the road in the San Antonio region? My whole back yard is planted with Hill Country natives and I would prefer to keep the the... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Native holly (ilex) for Austin area May 28, 2006 Hi--my brother and his family live in Austin, TX--their german shepard "Holly" just died (she was 13)--I was throwing around the idea of sending them a holly plant of some sort to have in honor of H... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Natural location of Ceanothus impressus in California May 21, 2006 Where is Ceanothus impressus 'victoria' native? I need as specific as you can. Thanks much. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Locating Rosa rugosa for Massachusetts May 09, 2006 There is a shrub that grows out on the Cape especially at the beach. I have always called it Beach Rose and I have heard other people call it a Beach Plum. However, the most recent picture of a Beac... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Western Azalea (Rhododendron occidentale) for Southern California May 04, 2006 Are there any fragrant varieties of azalea that will grow in Southern California? There are some wonderful native azaleas I found in North Carolina, such as the r. alabamense and r. atlanticum. I h... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Failure of fragrance in Sweet Shrub (Calycanthus floridus) in Illinois April 30, 2006 I have a sweet shrub bush that I took from the root of another one. Every year it blooms but never has even a smidgen of fragrance. The bush it came from was very fragrant. Should I do something to th... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Native plants with little sun and northern exposure for New York April 26, 2006 I live in a co-op and want to fix up the backyard. The backyard area has a west area to plant with a northern exposure and little sun and I am looking to plant something to cover the area. I would lik... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Native, non-invasive plants for Canaan Valley, WV April 23, 2006 I recently purchased a home on an acre of land in the middle of Canaan Valley, WV. The front yard is flat and sunny, the back is on a ridge and is a little forest with a creek at the bottom. The tre... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Xeriscaping in clay on a slope in Fort Worth April 06, 2006 Xeriscaping in clay (Fort Worth) on a slope -- Please offer suggestions and publications. Thanks View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Native plants suitable for rock garden in New York March 26, 2006 I'd like to start a rock garden. The area is very rocky, the soil is shallow and it's partially shaded. I'd like mostly perennials that flower from spring to fall. I hope to make some purchases fr... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Evergreen fast-growing native shrubs for privacy shield in Baytown, TX March 07, 2006 A gas well is going in across the road. We need a fast growing native tall shrub to line our property next to the road. It needs to maintain its leaves in the winter also. We hope to cut down on th... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Low cost, low maintenance, water tolerants native plants for New Jersey February 25, 2006 I am planning a bed around my deck which will include shrubs and flowers. I am looking for plants that require a lot of water due to the wet soil conditions and poor drainage in my yard. Do you have... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Use of cenizo (Leucophyllum frutescens) for tea February 20, 2006 Back in the 50's when I spent the summers with my grandmother south of Hondo, Texas, she use to pick leaves from the cenizo (purple sage) bushes, dry them and then brew them for tea. I asked one of m... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Inadvisability of introducing American Beautyberry to Michigan November 25, 2005 I recently brought back to Michigan from Florida 2 young beauty berry plants. I currently have them in a pot inside my home. They are growing quite well, and show a hearty appearance. What are th... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Hearty, bushy native plants for windowboxes in Abilene, TX October 08, 2005 I live in Abilene, Tx and am a horrible gardener. I would love to have window boxes with some sort of hearty bushy plant. Any suggestions, I'm at a total loss...? Thanks! View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Monocarpic plants for Indiana October 06, 2005 We were in Hawaii this summer and became acquainted with the Silversword. This plant (according to what we were told) blooms only once in it's lifetime (of 50-70 years). Are you aware of any other pl... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Landscaping with native plants in Austin October 06, 2005 I'm expanding a flower bed in front of my house and would like to keep it all natives. 1) How do I find out what type of soil I should add? (I live near Hyde Park, Austin and haven't had a soil te... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Smarty Plants on lantana in Dallas September 14, 2005 For several years, the lantana plants in my backyard in Dallas grew and bloomed all Summer and Fall until the first real cold snap. I've loved having a native plant that didn't need constant care a... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Texas Sage in Indiana September 14, 2005 I was living in Texas and now I have moved to Indiana. I would love to have some Texas Sage here. is it possible? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Apartment Landscaping September 13, 2005 I live in an apartment and have a small patch filled with rocks and an ugly plant I don't know the name of. I want to take out the existing plants and put something else in. It has to be hearty,low m... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Controlling scale insects on hollies July 10, 2005 I have a number of holly shrubs at the side of my house. Recently I noticed that they have tiny white spots on them. I looked at several native Texas gardening books, but can't find what I need to t... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Suggestions for Texas native plants for memorial June 30, 2005 A dear friend of ours has passed and we would like some ideas of a native Texas plant we could plant in memory of her. It will be grown in the hill region near Houston. Thank you. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Smarty Plants on bio-security June 11, 2005 Hello, My friend and I are summer interns at the Bryan Mound Strategic Petroleum Reserve Site in Freeport, Texas. Our jobs as the interns is to find a plant that is friendly to the animals around our... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Smarty Plants on mockoranges May 25, 2005 I live in Colorado where it is common to have 1 or 2 late frosts. I planted 4 littleleaf mockoranges (Philadelphus Microphyllus) 2 years ago and they are pretty much in full sun most of the day. I h... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Smarty Plants on arborvitaes March 28, 2005 Hello, I live in Allentown, PA and have a 7-foot arborvitae shrub in my backyard, planted in the corner of the yard where a wood fence intersects with the brick wall of the garage. I have had ma... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Texas native plants for cemetery site February 09, 2005 I am trying to landscape my mothers gravesite located in far East Texas (just outside of Nacogdoches) and I am looking for some evergreen bushes or any other decorative plants for that area. I am thi... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Late winter pruning of native Texas Sage January 27, 2005 I have several Texas Sage bushes that have started to get very woody and have growth only on the top. This seems to have led to a definite listing to one side. Should I trim these to the ground or... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Possibility of growing oak-leaf hydrangea in Comal County, TX January 08, 2005 In the last issue of the magazine, there was an item about the oak leaf hydrangea which stated the plant's habitat is east of the Mississippi River. Can it be grown in Comal County? Any special nee... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Native perennial winter plants for Waco, TX November 03, 2004 I live in the Waco area, and would like to know winter plants that I could use that would come back each year, flowering or otherwise. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Low growing native shrubs to go next to a rock pool deck July 29, 2004 I have a pool surrounded by a rock deck, & want to plant some low-growing shrubs next to the deck. However, I want to ensure the root system of the plant isn't invasive enough to crack the rock deck ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Age at which native agarita produces berries July 28, 2004 At what age does agarita produce berries? Is this plant self pollinating? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Survivability of plants after freeze December 08, 2003 I have many beautiful plants that froze. Some were Lantana, Hummingbird Bush, Candlestick Trees, Esperanza, Some flowers, and Marigolds. I love all of my plants and flowers and I want them to grow bac... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| topic | question | |