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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Ground cover for cleared property in Austin February 23, 2010 I live in a small apartment building near 183 & 620. The land beyond the lawn has trees and has been cleared of brush. They are planning to seed the ground. I thought invasive native ground covers wo... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Plants for a mixed border in Houston February 22, 2010 I live in Houston and have a flowerbed I'd like to fill with plants that will look good year-round. The back is already lined with 6-foot shrubs so nothing like that. I'd like something with colorf... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Groundcover for primary school in Illinois January 12, 2010 I'm looking for a ground cover to plant on primary school grounds. It will need to be able to handle foot traffic. Is there anything that flowers and is a perennial? The area gets full sun and is b... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Groundcover for parking strip in Pasadena, California January 04, 2010 Can you suggest a low growing, low maintenance plant which will spread to cover parking strip in Pasadena, California? Thank you. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Groundcovers for Sarasota County, Florida January 02, 2010 I would like to replace the grass in my yard with native or any other appropriate ground cover. I live in North Port, Sarasota County Florida. I would be grateful for any suggestions. Thank you in ad... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Replacing a Grass Lawn with Moss January 02, 2010 I have a small north facing yard that I would like to change from grass to moss. There is some moss now but still lots of grass. I need to rake a lot of leaves in the fall but want to get away from a ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Prairie wattle for woodland area in Austin November 29, 2009 Can prairie wattle be grown in a woodland area? It would get part shade, with full sun for at least half a day. The soil is a bit rocky; location is Austin. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Ground cover for New York sloped area November 24, 2009 I'm looking for native ground covers (vines?) for steep, heavy shale sloped areas as well as a ground cover in gently sloped area, preferably not higher than 6 inches. All that I've found is non-nat... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Vinca minor and St. Augustine grass November 22, 2009 Will St. Augustine grass choke out vinca minor? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Evergreen groundcover in Louisiana November 17, 2009 I need a suggestion for an evergreen groundcover plant that can tolerate moist soil. I want something that is low maintenance to go around a pergola in my backyard that gets mostly full sun. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Native plants for morning sun in Pembroke MA October 07, 2009 Could you please suggest native groundcover,plants/shrubs/grasses for eastern facing slope which gets morning sun? It is my front yard which slopes down toward driveway so it would be a major focal po... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Plants for wet soils in North Carolina October 03, 2009 I'm looking for evergreen plants (shrubs or ground cover)that will tolerate wet conditions for the zone 8 area of North Carolina. The local garden centers here do not stock these types of plants, eve... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Groundcover for Maryland to replace English ivy September 21, 2009 What is a suitable ground cover native replacement for english ivy? Native to Maryland. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Horseherb for ground cover in Dallas September 19, 2009 When considering horseherb as a ground cover for a large area; are there disadvantages to sowing seed versus planting established plants? If not, what time of year is best to sow horseherb? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Aggressive Frogfruit September 17, 2009 I have frogfruit voluntarily growing in my flower beds. I had intended to use it as a ground cover but am concerned that it is taking over. Will it kill (smother) my flowers that I have planted for bu... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Groundcovers for California September 16, 2009 Can you recommend native ground covers for shade area to prevent soil erosion; the area is near an old California Live Oak. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Native groundcover for central California September 02, 2009 In Modesto, CA. Hot summers, cold winters. Need a low ground cover for area next to driveway approx. 5ft X 14ft. that stays green all year round. I did have grass there but neigbors lawn is loaded wit... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Groundcover called Jumping Jacks August 19, 2009 My neighbor has a beautiful ground cover and she doesn't know the name and I have searched the nurseries and internet and can not find it. She says it spreads like crazy and when she was young they c... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Low native groundcover for Wicksburg/Newton AL July 29, 2009 I am laying a rather wide-set flagstone pathway in our back weeds (planning some native grass and wildflowers in the fall on either side of the path). I am looking for some very low native groundcover... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Non-vascular moss between flagstones in Mechanicsburg PA July 11, 2009 We would like to plant moss between our flagstone. However, the moss will have full sun all day. Can you recommend a moss for Central Pennsylvania near Harrisburg? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Plants for a sandy slope at a weekend cabin in central WI. June 30, 2009 I have a cabin in central Wisconsin where the soil is equivalent to a sandy beach. There are some areas that are nearly impossible to mow because of how steep the incline is. Could you recommend som... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Plants for a steep bank in Virginia June 23, 2009 I have a small yard with a 3 foot steep bank that I want to plant on. I am looking for fast growing ground cover. There is some shade but not a lot and has a southern exposure. Ground is a bit roug... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Plants to put between stepping stones in Virginia June 07, 2009 We are a public school in Northern Virginia and are looking for native plants that could be planted between heavily used stepping stones and could withstand some foot traffic (mostly in a sunny spot, ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Wildflowers for high canal bank in Florida May 27, 2009 My home is on a canal to a natural lake in Central Florida (Orlando area). I am wondering if there is a wildflower that I can grow on a 3' high canal bank that is mostly shady. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
Groundcover for wet area in Missouri May 25, 2009 Hello, I live in Missouri and our neighborhood is built over a natural spring. Half of my yard remains wet/moist for weeks to months and we can't mow it. I'm looking for a ground cover and plants... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
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