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
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| Restoring a prairie from Austin January 11, 2013 Restoring a mixed grass Blackland Prairie? Prairie Plant Succession? We are trying to establish climax species when an area is in a pioneering phase. Does the soil chemistry or biota change during ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| High mowing equipment for Llano TX November 03, 2012 We're trying to follow your wildflower meadow recommendation "if your meadow has tall, warm-season native grasses, wait until late summer or early fall to mow, allowing them to elongate, flower, and... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Non-native, invasive rescue grass in meadow garden in Smithville TX September 20, 2012 Despite numerous efforts, a solid field of cool weather rescue grass keeps desired wildflower and grass seeds from successfully growing on my "vacant" lot in town. I plan to I put out a 6 ml plasti... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Difficulty with Clay Soil from Palm Bay, FL August 22, 2012 I had a very nice little native shady area behind my house for over 40 years, but now it has been cleared except for a 100 foot tall live oak in the center of this raised mound (50' x 80'). I've be... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Mowing frequency of native lawn from Georgetown TX August 18, 2012 I have a native grass and wildflower lawn. At what frequency and when should the lawn be mowed? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Wildflower field for sewage leach field from Olga Washington August 01, 2012 I am interested in planting a large native wildflower field at a resort in the San Juan Islands in Washington State. It would be over a sewage leach field for many cabins and bathrooms. Are there any ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Drought tolerant ground cover for Midlothian, TX June 17, 2012 I'm looking for a fast, low ground cover. That is drought tolerant for a large slope. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Meadow garden for Colorado Springs CO June 03, 2012 We recently purchased a restored home on a mesa just above the downtown area of Colorado Springs on the front range. The previous owners seeded the front lawn with blue gramma and told me that all I ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Ground cover for a bank in PA April 28, 2012 I live in Landisburg, PA, (zone 6). I need to find some ground cover for a primarily full sun bank that is roughly 10-12' down over the embankment and up to 100' long. This area wraps around our po... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Herbicide use in bluebonnet field in Blanco, TX April 10, 2012 Dear Mr. Smarty Plants, I have the best of both worlds and the worst of both worlds. I’ve been throwing bluebonnet seeds for 6 years on our property near Blanco, and when it rains, as it has this year... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Should the herbicide Ornamec 170 be used on unwanted grasses? March 15, 2012 I have a lovely wildflower garden in a field behind my house; unfortunately, the wildflowers are being smothered by grasses. I understand that Ornamec 170 can be used to control grasses in wildflower... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Wildflower Lawn for Round Rock, TX March 04, 2012 Dear Mr. Smarty Plants, I live on the west side of Interstate 35 in Round Rock. I have a very sick St. Augustine lawn that I would like to replace with some sort of wildflower mix. I like the look of... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Information about pre-1920s biodiversity near San Antonio February 12, 2012 Dear Mr. Smarty Plants: I am transforming my .3 acre urban yard three miles north of downtown San Antonio into a native wildscape. I am planting all native plants using your website, books, and nea... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Landscaping large area in Webster KY February 10, 2012 We just bought a house that we fell in love with. The land around it . . . well it has GREAT potential but is seriously lacking at the moment. Trying to get the farm up and running leaves very litt... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Preparing for planting wildflower meadow in Austin January 02, 2012 We are in the midst of prepping beds for wildflower plantings in the spring. We spent the last month pulling up our existing lawn and invasive grasses so we are now wondering how to secure the beds f... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Groundcovers for Miami, FL November 10, 2011 I live in Miami, Florida. I have a medium size Bismarck Palm in my front yard. What would be a good ground cover other than grass around this palm? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| When to reseed wildflowers in a drought year? October 18, 2011 My acreage with extensive wildflowers was mowed in 2010 before annuals had seeded. Only a few returned this year. Considering the predicted lonterm drought should I postpone reseeding this fall? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Blue wildflowers for Massachusetts meadow garden September 30, 2011 I am restoring a 1980's era barn in Massachusetts. To celebrate the roll-out of the restored barn, I would like to plant wildflowers in the hayfield next to the barn (aprox. 3 acres). I would like ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Wildseed Planting in a drought September 14, 2011 Due to the extreme drought and no rain in the near future in central Texas would it be prudent to have a wildseed planting in October? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Non-native bermudagrass in meadow in Allen TX August 17, 2011 What is the effect of not killing or removing bermuda grass when converting an area to a prairie meadow in Allen, Texas? Most articles describing how to create and establish a prairie meadow suggest ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Short wildflowers to interplant with grass in PA July 05, 2011 I live in NE PA and would like to grow short wildflowers throughout my yard mixed in with my grass. Is this possible? If so, what would be a good match for my zone? I will be mowing the grass once a w... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| How to make a lawn into a prairie in Arlington, Texas September 15, 2010 I am removing lawn grasses in order to start a native prairie meadow. After grass removal, I'll put down 1/2" of compost. I will broadcast wildflower seeds on the compost. If I mulch after broadcas... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Early, middle and late blooming flowers for pollinators in East Texas July 05, 2010 On our farm in northeast Texas we are participating in a Conservation Program through the NRCS. We have to plant 4 acres for pollinators--early blooming, middle blooming, and late blooming. I need t... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Wildflower garden for a drain field in Olivet MI June 27, 2010 I have a large area that is currently lawn over a drain field. I would like to turn this area into a wild flower garden. Will the wild flower roots, etc. cause any concerns or damages to a drain fie... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Native xeric grasses for Colorado June 24, 2010 Tired of mowing - replacing western exposure full sun lawn with native xeric grass. Please explain the pros and cons of Bouteloua Gracilis (Blue Grama) and Bouteloua Dactyloides Bella (Bella Blue Gra... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
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