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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| Non-branching mimosa tree June 26, 2008 I have a Mimosa Tree, just about 2 years old, grown from seed. The problem with it is that it has not branched out, it looks like one long branch growing out of the ground, about 5 feet if stood strai... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Non-blooming wisteria in Oklahoma June 24, 2008 I have a wisteria bush that doesn't bloom. It's two years old. What should I do? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Evergreen hedge for constant rain June 24, 2008 We live in Washington State up north by Canadian border. We need a hedge that will survive the constant rain. We have tried cedar. They seem to turn brown and die,one at a time so we keep replacing th... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Taproot tree to replace willows by pool June 23, 2008 Installing Pool with bomanite decking all around it. We're in process of cutting down 18 year old Weeping Willow due to root invasiveness and small messy leaves. Can you recommend a good shade tree w... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Invasiveness of wild petunia in Austin June 15, 2008 Is the wild petunia in the data base as invasive/aggressive as the more common ruellia? In other words, will it pop up everywhere? Ruellia nudiflora (Engelm. & Gray) Urban Common wild petunia, Vi... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Growing bluebonnets in England June 08, 2008 I'm sending some bluebonnet seeds to Norwich England to a dear friend. What time of year should she plant them? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Elimination of nutgrass May 06, 2008 Nutgrass has taken over my vegetable and perennial garden to the point that I can not see my plants or granite sand paths. The two major areas are about 600 square feet in total. What can I do to co... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Brown, dry leaves on weeping willow tree May 01, 2008 We live in central TX and have just planted a weeping willow tree. Our back yard has a retention pond and ravine that parallels our property and we were told that the weeping willow will do perfectly ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Do Salvia coccinea and Salvia occidentalis occur in Hawaii April 27, 2008 Aloha, Would you please happen to know if the salvia occidentalis and the salvia coccinea are growing in a wild state in Hawaii, the quantity (small or large areas? What are the weather conditions ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Use of chemicals for eradicating invasive plants April 24, 2008 Re: Round Up We are extremely reluctant to use any chemical agents in our yard (or around our home) due to environmental & ecological reasons... However, we are becoming inundated with several ver... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Native plants for southwest exposure in Tulsa OK April 24, 2008 I want to plant something in a bed on the South side of my house with some Western exposure. The space is in a bed that would share space with a Red Tip Photinia (next to the house)& liriope( on the ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Organic means for ridding garden of stinging ants April 18, 2008 Dear Mr. Smarty Pants, I have a butterfly garden that is filled with native plants the butterflies LOVE! However I have a colony of red ants that have moved in. I need to trim some of the more inva... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Use of kudzu in landscaping April 11, 2008 HELLO MR.SMARTY PlANTS,my question is , I need a # of kudzu plants to grow quickly for a huge bare back wall since we are selling our house & have zero anything back there.we are getting comments that... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Information about empress tree (Paulownia tomentosa) March 07, 2008 I have an Empress Tree, 3 yrs old, and the limbs grow straight out from the trunk about 2-3ft and then grow straight upward. When do they start to grow outward for a canopy?? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Name of the rough-barked mimosa (Albizia kalkora) February 12, 2008 I read two years ago that there was two different mimosa trees one that is common and has the smooth bark and the other one had a rough bark. I am Interested in the one who has the rough bark and the ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| How to eradicate chameleon plant (Houttuynia cordata) February 10, 2008 How do I get rid of a invasive ground covering plant called Camelion without hurting the ground so I can plant something else? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Identification of lantanas safe for use in Florida February 10, 2008 Why do you list lantana camara as a native to the U.S. and as a native plant in Florida? It is a category one invasive exotic on the Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council's list of invasive exotics. La... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Official list of invasive plants in Texas. January 25, 2008 Is there an "official" invasive / noxious weed list for Texas? I have found several lists, but I wanted to know if there was one truly accepted list for Texas. If not, what would be the #1 list yo... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Viability of Ehretia anacua tree for Austin, TX January 17, 2008 I live in Austin, TX and I see you've recommended the Ehretia anacua tree for someone living here. Also, my arborist mentioned it as a replacement for non-native, invasive trees. However, the databas... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Control of English ivy November 27, 2007 I need to know if there is a way to kill, or contain, English Ivy that was planted as groundcover next door. Despite my discouragement, my next door neighbor planted English Ivy as groundcover all alo... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| How to get rid of devils club (Oplopanax horridus) November 22, 2007 please tell me how to get rid of devils club!!! View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Control of King Ranch Bluestem (Bothriochloa ischaemum) November 21, 2007 What is the best way to get rid of King Ranch Grass (an invasive plant) on my half acre property? I felt like mowing just encouraged more seed heads to pop up. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Removal of mature agaves November 20, 2007 Hello- we live in Austin, TX and have a bed of different varieties of agave. They are near the walkway to our house, and are so out of control they pose a hazard to our guests walking up to the house... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Help for restoring landscape to indigenous native plants November 05, 2007 I have inherited some acres in Robertson County (Texas) which is about 40 miles north of Bryan/College Station. I would like to restore the landscape to the indigenous native plants without just lett... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Destroying seeds of Chinaberry tree October 23, 2007 I have a "chinaberry" tree in my yard, and while I understand that it is an invasive plant to Texas, I was hoping to save the large mature tree. As an effort to be more responsible I have been coll... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
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