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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Using Horse Manure for the Garden July 07, 2016 Can you use horse manure for decomposed matter for your flower beds, etc.? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Possible Herbicide Contamination of Soil July 07, 2016 My mother will be 80 this year and lives in Houston, Texas. She has a raised bed garden near her neighbors fence. It has been there for many years. She feels that he uses Roundup for his weeds near a... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Shrubs for Privacy Fence in Hawaii July 06, 2016 I live in Hawaii and need to create some privacy along a wall of my house. The septic drain field is 5' away and I am looking for 6'-8' shrubs that have shallow roots. Would something like cordyline f... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
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 | ||
Green Ash Tree in California Dropping Seeds July 06, 2016 We have two large green ash trees in our front yard. 2 yrs ago, they began to lose seeds year round. When they're green and when they turn brown. I believe they may have termites or some type of in... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Plant Suggestions for Flower Boxes in NY July 06, 2016 I am doing a project for a friend that had some flower boxes built along his driveway. They are along a hill leading up to his porch. They are made of all wood and have a wooden wall along the not-hil... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Native Perennials for Dry Shade in NM July 06, 2016 I live in Edgewood, NM at an elevation of about 7,200 ft. It is very dry here and it can get below zero (rarely) in the winter. I have some areas under cedar trees where I have had difficulty gettin... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Savannah Holly True to Seed? July 03, 2016 I read your information on Savannah holly. Does this mean that none of the berries will produce a Savannah holly (Ilex x attenuata) but will either be Ilex cassine or Ilex opaca seeds? Thanks so much... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Bird Attracting Shrub for NH July 03, 2016 I am trying to attract birds to my newly built home's front yard. I have no foliage out front near our picture window. I live in Londonderry, NH. What bush or shrub can I plant that will attract bird... 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 | ||
Problem with Adding 5 inches of Mulch and Soil Under Juniper July 03, 2016 My landscaper added about 3" of mulch and 2" of dirt under my ashe junipers to create a planting bed. Several have turned gold/yellowish this winter including a female tree. They are still flexible an... 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 | ||
Southern Live Oak Authority for Jackson MS June 23, 2016 Who are the foremost authorities on Southern Live Oaks? May need expert testimony to oppose cutting of 50 year-old live oaks in boulevard of Riverside Drive in Jackson, MS View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Deer Resistance Input from Northern VA June 22, 2016 Hello. I live in the deer infested woods of Northern VA. I am always looking for plants that deer have little interest in to cover other plants. The deer generally have little interest in mints (Py... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Questions about hollyhocks and yucca May 25, 2016 I have 2 questions. In Western N.Y. State the hollyhocks grow like weeds but add color with their large stalks. I've sent for seeds and the best I can do in N.W.Travis county is 9 inch plants that die... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Groundcover for sunny slope in Minnesota May 24, 2016 Hi, I'm from Apple Valley, MN. We backyard has large slope areas that get sun through out the day. We have huge weed and buck thorn problem. Can you please suggest a good ground covering plant that gr... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Vine for 60 foot long by 2 foot high cinder block wall May 20, 2016 Looking for a vine to cover a 60 foot long 2 foot high cinder block wall. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Century Plant woes May 04, 2016 My century plant was fine two weeks ago. Tonight I seen this. Not sure what is happening. It 9 years old. IMG_4716.JPG View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Cork Screw Rush doesn't spiral in Whitehall, PA. April 29, 2016 Why won't the stems on my cork screw rush plant twist and/or spiral? It's planted outside. It was twisting and spirally when I planted it. Growing outside the past 4 years but does not twist or curl l... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Cedar Elms too close together April 27, 2016 I'm fairly new to North Texas and recently bought a new home with 2 young cedar elms in the front yard. From my understanding these trees can grow quite large. My front is about 25 feet wide and the... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Sophora seeds to give away April 13, 2016 When we moved to TX years ago we bought a mountain laurel so we could have the beautiful purple flowers and were disappointed when the flowers every year were white (with a few purple ones here and th... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Why doesn't my Rusty blackhead bloom? April 10, 2016 I have planted Rusty blackhaws the past several years..some bloomed the first year and every year since....and others 3 years old have not bloomed yet... Do all Rusty blackhaws bloom eventually or ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Red bugs have appeared on my Texas mountain laurel April 10, 2016 What should I do about the red bugs on my mountain laurel? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Large, fast-growing shade tree for Val Verde County, Texas April 03, 2016 What is an overall good shade tree, very large & fast growing, to plant in Central South Texas, Val Verde County region? I am told that virtually nothing but Live Oaks or some other type of Oak will ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Status of Texas Olive tree in Katy, TX March 30, 2016 I have a Texas Olive tree and it has very few leaves. Is this normal? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
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