Native Plants
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Smarty Plants Question Topics
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| topic | question | |
| Yellowing leaves May 06, 2008 What causes yellowing of native garden plant leaves? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Round growths on Mexican buckeye April 28, 2008 I have two pink buckeyes next to each other in my yard. The branches on one are completely covered in brown, round growths about the size of a pill bug. The other tree has none. Can you tell me what t... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Red spider mites in native bluebonnets in Austin April 02, 2008 What would you do if the WFC bluebonnets developed a bad case of red spider mites? That is what has happened to many of mine here in Austin. I noticed them the other day and I must have been asleep be... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Reason for die-back of native Mahonia repens April 01, 2008 I have several mahonia repens plants planted on my property. This is the third spring for them and I have noticed that they look like they might be dying out. The leaves have turned brown and are cu... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Fasciation in Houston. March 29, 2008 I live in Houston and have had a rather large flower garden for many years. Most of the flowers are just gorgeous but over the last two or three years I have noticed that occasionally some of the flo... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Problems with Eves necklacepods (Styphnolobium affine) March 25, 2008 Mr. S-P, I urgently need your advice regarding two Eve's necklacepods that appear to be dying. They are in two completely different areas of my yard. One began leafing out and then the leaves sh... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Mountain laurel (Sophora secundiflora) refuses to bloom March 07, 2008 We have a Texas Mountain Laurel that gets full sunlight, but does not bloom. It is 4-5 ft tall & 3-4 ft wide & healthy. Is there anything we can do to make it bloom next year? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Improving blooming on mock orange March 03, 2008 I have a now 6 yr. old mock orange shrub in the garden which has never bloomed, darn it. I have fed, not fed, mulched, not mulched, sheared, not sheared. What gives? Will it ever bloom, or shall I ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Disease-resistant squash varieties for Central Texas February 03, 2008 Can you give me names of some disease-resistant summer squash varieties available in Central Texas? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Promoting bloom in Chocolate Summer Mimosa January 11, 2008 Please help! I purchased a Chocolate Summer Mimosa from one of our local nurseries. It was a brand new plant to them and they don't really know much about them. I planted it just 3 years ago as an... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Use of surfactants with herbicide for water January 05, 2008 I read the article on frogs and the use of Rodeo. Your answer was correct, but to the best of my knowledge, Rodeo is approved for use near water only because it lacks a surfactant. When surfactant... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Care of Ecuadorian penco century plant December 17, 2007 I was recently given a Penco, Century plant from Ecuador. It doesn't seem to be doing well. Two of the leaves have turned dark, then yellow, and died completely. Five remain, one seems to be dying as... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Black leaves and dying kinnikinnick (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi) December 16, 2007 My kinnikinnick has developed dark leaf spots and, in some cases the entire leaf has turned black or entire plants have turned black and died off. I'm worried about leaf spot, root rot and leaf gall... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Determine oak wilt in red oaks December 12, 2007 I am concerned my red oaks have oak wilt. How can I tell what is wrong with them? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Navel orange disease problems November 14, 2007 I live in Glendale, Arizona. I hav a mature miniature navel orange tree. This year it has lost a considerable amount of leaves. Also the fruit all has a large yellow spot. It looks pitiful. What shoul... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Growth on trunk of Eastern Redbud November 14, 2007 My seven yr. old Eastern Redbud has a large patch (12x4inches) of white grey, shell or mushroom-like growth on the trunk. The bark has a wide split so the growth is on the layer of wood inside the sp... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Loss of blooms in potted plants in Hawaii November 11, 2007 My lanai is in strong afternoon sun and no matter what "full sun" plants I try to grow they quickly stop blooming. Plumeria, Hibiscus, Echinacea, even Bougainvillea...they continue to grow but lose... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Transplanting care of Mayten tree (Maytenus sp.) November 06, 2007 I planted a Mayten tree 2 years ago. It's about 8 feet tall. The trunk is about 1-1/2 or 2" in diameter. The earth around it sunk and now there is a "bowl" that fills with water in the rain. I... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Flameleaf sumac problems October 18, 2007 I have three flameleaf sumacs, which were planted last December. One is doing very well, but two are losing their leaves. First, black spots appear on the leaves, then the leaves turn yellow and wilt,... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Nutrient imbalance in Tecoma stans October 18, 2007 I have two Tecoma stans on the north-east side of my yard. They have grown very tall (5') but have not bloomed all summer. Last summer they bloomed profusely. Any idea what the problem might be? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Newly planted anacacho leaf browning October 15, 2007 I have just put my anacacho orchid into the ground and its leaves are turning brown and falling off. Is that normal for this time of year, or have I shocked it? What can I do to ensure its health? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Salt from water softener affecting roses. October 12, 2007 I have a water softener at my well and wonder if an accumulation of salt over time is causing problems for my roses. After several years of doing really well the branches turn brown and eventually die... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Care for heritage roses October 07, 2007 Dear Mr. SmartyPlants, I took some cuttings from an antique rose my grandmother had.I had good luck , had some of them grow for me. Some of them have blooms and others are long and lanky stems but n... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Possible disease on Eastern Redbud October 06, 2007 Our Eastern Redbud appears to be suffering from our recent drought. The leaves are turning brown in July/August on a few branches. A few black spots appear on the leaves before they turn brown. Ot... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Care and fruiting time of pumpkins October 06, 2007 This is my first year growing pumpkin. I have a good vine with flowers now & then, but I still don't see a little pumpkin forming. What am I doing wrong? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Lantanas failing to bloom, turning brown October 06, 2007 The lantana in my front yard does not bloom, is not overwatered but does get watered, leaves turned brown and plants generally have not grown. The lantana in the rest of the yard are in bloom and lo... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Care of Styphnolobium affine, Eves necklace October 05, 2007 I have an 18 yr old Eve's Necklace tree that is dying from the "bottom up". It has only a few leaves at the very top of the tree. I have, connected to the gutter, a rain barrel from which the exc... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Care of Jade plant September 06, 2007 Hi there, I have a question and really appreciate your time helping me regarding my plant. I bought a Jade plant; 35 yr. old ; very thick stems and healthy at the time of purchase from a very si... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Possible causes for plant problems in East Texas September 06, 2007 I have been an avid gardener for over 35 years in Texas.I love the wildflowers and use them extensively in my 2 acre plot here in East Texas. There is something really bad going on with my garden: pl... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Problems with purple passion flower September 04, 2007 Hello, I live in La Place, Louisiana (30 miles west of New Orleans). In March 2007, I planted a purple passion flower (maypop). During the spring it thrived and was covered with brilliant green le... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Oak leaf fall causing ivy damage August 28, 2007 I read the A/Q in the Austin American-Statesman Saturday, August 25, regarding the leaves falling now from the live oaks. I am experiencing the same thing, but it is the leaves of my post oaks that a... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Cool, wet summer effect on evergreen sumac August 28, 2007 Hi Mr. Smarty Plants, I have 3 evergreen sumac bushes that I planted as a screen between my house and my neighbors two years ago. They are located in a part of our yard that receives a lot of runof... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Yellowing leaves on young bur oak August 06, 2007 I saw your response on 7/25 about leaves on mature live oaks turning yellow, then brown because of excessive rain. The same thing is happening to our young burr oak. Leaves are turning yellowish, th... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Diagnosis of problem with Parsley hawthorn August 06, 2007 I have a Crataegus marshallii (Parsley hawthorn) that is about 3 years old. It leafed out this spring and flowered lightly. As the summer has progressed, though, the leaves have been dropping premat... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Identification of worm feeding on chockecheery August 03, 2007 I am looking to find out what sort of worm looking insect, is commonly found on chokecherry trees. It has a turquoise appearance with yellow fingerlike projections on the back. It suctions onto the ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Protection of American beautyberry in Pennsylvania July 30, 2007 I have had a beauty berry 2 years now. I trim it back in early spring and it returns beautifully. ...but no flowers this year and it's almost August. Last year, very few berries. Can you help? I... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Bloom color change in Choctaw Crape Myrtle July 30, 2007 In 2006 my wife bought a Choctaw Crape Myrtle from a local nursery. It had a tag from Greenleaf Nursery and had several blooms in the "correct" pink color. The plant was 5-6 ft tall. It has grown... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Overwatering and fertilization of whiteleaf manzanita July 27, 2007 Hi, I have an Arctostaphylos Dr. Hurd, southern California coast, several years old, 10 feet, that has a few large branches with yellowing and spotted leaves... also dropping many. causes? remedy? sh... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Oak diseases as a result of wet, cool weather July 25, 2007 The mature live oak trees in our back yard have been dropping leaves just like they do in March, but this is July! Small to medium spots on the leaves turn brown before they drop. The veins of the l... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Non-fruiting squash July 25, 2007 With all this rain in Dallas why would our Zuchinni and Yellow squash be beautiful and green but not produce any squash? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Recovery of damaged fuchsia plant in hanging basket July 23, 2007 I had a beautiful fuchsia plant hanging on my porch. The hanger gave way and the plant fell straight down into another flower bed. The fuchsia seemed ok. I put it back in the pot put up new strong ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Control of live oak suckers by cutting July 23, 2007 How do I control the Live Oak root suckers? At the moment we are cutting them as they come out of the ground. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Transplant shock in Dakota mock vervain July 23, 2007 We just planted some Verbena bipinnatifida in our back yard and when we planted it, it had purple flowers on it but now they've all dried up. We live in central Colorado and thought this plant was fa... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Effect of unusual wet weather on desert willows July 23, 2007 I live in North Central Texas and have 3 beautiful Desert willow trees that are usually in full bloom. I've kept them pruned to form a nice full tree shape but now they are losing leaves and looking ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Repair of broken branch stump on pecan tree July 18, 2007 Hi Mr. Smarty Plants, big fan. Recently one of my pecan trees had a large branch break off, about 4 or 5 inches in diameter. The strange part was there was no clear sign of what caused the damage, i... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Juniper as host of cedar-apple rust July 17, 2007 Thanks for the helpful advice on the Eastern Red Cedar. I was wondering if you could ease my mind about a potential problem. I have read up on some of the native plants in my area in a very good book ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Advisability of trimming oak trees in August July 13, 2007 In general,what is your opinion on pruning oak trees in August? If it is positive, should the extreme moisture of this year affect the timing? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Identification of gooseberry plant July 12, 2007 Grew up in Colorado, our yard and several near us had medium to large size deciduous shrubs that produced small (.25"-.375") red berries that were very tomato-like. Delicate with a thin skin, sligh... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Recovery from transplant shock for bougainvillea July 12, 2007 I live outside of Phoenix. I just bought a bougainvillea in a large pot. It was doing nicely until I brought it home. I placed it in a sunny spot in my front yard inside of a large volcanic rock that ... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
| Transplant shock in Vacccinum corymbosum (highbush blueberry) June 28, 2007 Blueberry plants - We planted Northland and Blue Crop, 2 of each. All 4 plants have some leaves that are turning brown. This starts at the tip of the leaf, eventually encompasses the entire leaf, a... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
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