Native Plants
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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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| Why are the eastern red cedars in Bastrop/Travis County turning brown? May 11, 2009 I live on the Bastrop/Travis county, TX line and have many eastern red cedars on my property. About 10 of them are dying and it has happened quickly with the onset of the warmer weather. I noticed d... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Why are my Junipers turning brown in San Antonio? May 11, 2009 My Texas mountain cedars (junipers, I know) are turning brown, limb by limb. What is the problem and how do I save what looks like a dying tree. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Will Mountain Laurels be harmed by juglones from my pecan tree? May 06, 2009 Hi. I just bought a house. It has a big pecan tree at the edge of the front lawn next to the street. I guess it's about 25 feet from the front of the house. I was thinking of planting mountain la... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Ring of small holes around pecan tree branches May 05, 2009 I live outside Cooper, TX and I have a pecan tree about 15 years old, which I just noticed has little round holes (about the size of a pencil) going around the branches. It branches out about 3 feet ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Older leaves yellowing on Savannah holly in Dallas May 01, 2009 I planted a Savannah Holly in Dallas, TX in the Fall of 2008. It has new growth and some white buds all over it, but some of the older leaves are turning yellow and dropping off. Is this normal? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Brown patches on St. Augustine grass April 24, 2009 I have brown patches on my st. augustine grass, it looks like the grass has rotted from standing water, but the drainage is not a problem, What could it be? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Bignonia capreolata with brown leaves in Pennsylvania April 24, 2009 3 year old crossvine leaves brown and dead looking. Will it come back and bud out? Crossvine on fence southern exposure. Crossvine on fence in another area has leaves and are dark green/purple - sa... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Yaupons dying back in San Antonio April 23, 2009 I have 4 yaupon shrubs in the same area for several years. This past winter one turned brown from inside to outside very quickly. It is dead but the roots are not loose. The others began doing the sam... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Yellowing leaves on yaupon in Ft. Worth April 23, 2009 I planted a Pride of Houston Yaupon Holly in January in full sun. It is blooming little white flowers right now for spring, but a lot of leaves are turning yellow. Do you know what is causing this? ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Problems with non-native weeping willow April 17, 2009 The trunk of my Weeping Willow tree has raised donut growths.The left base has decay. There is a large space between the base and the soil (no roots) and the wood is brittle. Large ants with a black ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Fronds turning brown on yucca in Leander, TX April 13, 2009 Dear Mr. Smarty Plants, I live Northwest of Austin in Leander and have grown a spanish dagger yucca for several years. It is 8 feet tall and each spring it puts up a showy spike of blooms. The old fr... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Problems with Crape Myrtles in Oklahoma. April 12, 2009 I planted Crape Myrtles,Catawba, that are about 4 feet high. I planted them last October. They all had new leaves on them a week ago. All of the leaves are now brown and shriveled up. There is a t... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Problems with red tip photinia in San Antonio March 29, 2009 I have a red tip photinia that's about 20 years old and about 20 feet high--it is big! I noticed last summer the highest leaves looked droopy all the time even with deep watering and now that portion... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Moth using Agarita as its larval food in New Braunfels, TX March 27, 2009 What moth uses agarita as its larval food? It is a perennial problem that can nearly defoliate the specimen and severely limit its flower production. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Keeping dogs and cats out of flower gardens March 02, 2009 Do you have any suggestions to keep the cats and dogs out of my flower garden? They either just walk through it, and trample everything, or sleep on the soft blooms and squish everything. I am despe... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Pest on leaves of native Texas persimmon in Laredo, TX February 20, 2009 I have a transplanted a Texas persimmon tree from the wild. It has some globes in the leaves. It seems like some pest injected something from underside of leaves. Any suggestion? What is happening t... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Bacterial spot in peach tree in McDade TX February 05, 2009 I have a Red Globe peach tree which was planted in February 2008. The local agricultural extension agent identified the tree as having Bacterial Spot in November 2008. They recommended copper hydrox... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Problems with wax myrtle in Austin February 01, 2009 I have been struggling with wax myrtles for the last year! We live in NW Austin, The plants start off great and then thin out, leaves go brown, and die. I then cut off the dead wood in the hope that t... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Problems with gnats in dirt December 27, 2008 I have problems with gnats in my dirt. It's something I can't get control of. What can I do? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Exposed area on native elm in Texas December 26, 2008 I have an elm tree starting to show signs of dying. It has an exposed area at the trunk of the tree turning white. When it rains there is a 6-inch strip (the width of the exposed area) running up th... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Why is my Mountain Laurel in distress? November 26, 2008 We have planted our 2nd Texas Mountain Laurel in the same spot (after fresh berm built with sandy loam) and it is not looking good in less than 2 weeks. We have an identical berm on the other end of... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Pale leaves and brown tips on Tecoma stans in Austin November 12, 2008 I have a Tecoma Stans planted in a large galvanized container in a sunny spot. It has grown very fast in the last few months and flowers regularly, but the leaves are pale and the tips are turning bro... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Problems with hibiscus tree in Wichita Falls, TX November 10, 2008 My Hibiscus trees have black spots on the leaves. What might this be and what is the remedy? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Problems with hibiscus in Florida November 09, 2008 Have a hibiscus in Florida. It has always done beautifully planted in the ground. This year, it has developed something where the branches are sort of white, and the buds (and ends of branches) look ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Mildew in Phlox paniculata October 13, 2008 I planted garden phlox (phlox paniculata) in my front landscaping and it is suffering from mildew. It is wet on that side due to a down spout and it may benefit from being split. Does anyone know of... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
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