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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| Red pods on Canna Lilies from Windsor VA July 21, 2013 What are the dark red pods on my canna lilies? View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Recreating a wildflower meadow, central Texas July 02, 2013 We have an acre on our property that has bluebonnets. Unfortunately, it also has other plants that we don't want -Johnson grass, nettles, burrs. We plan to do a controlled burn in the fall and re-... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Standing Cypress Plants in San Antonio, TX June 26, 2013 I purchased seeds for standing cypress 2 years ago and this spring they look beautiful. What is the best way to harvest the seeds? Also, will the current plants come back next spring or will I have to... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Why Did Gaillardia and Aquilegia Changed Color? June 26, 2013 Both a Gaillardia pulchella and two red columbines bloomed normally last summer, but this summer the Gaillardia's petals are all yellow and one columbine is white and the other is yellow. What caused... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Seeding the opposite bank of a canal in Texas June 26, 2013 We have a canal in our backyard. I thought it would be lovely to have flowers growing on the opposite bank. I could get to it to toss seeds, but not plant anything in the dirt because the ground slop... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Flowering plant for gravesite in Weatherford TX June 23, 2013 I want to plant flowering plant of some kind at parent's grave site in Weatherford, TX. The family cemetery is on a limestone hill with no irrigation or ability to water other than nature. Would on... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Can poisonous seed of wild plum be safely removed after steaming from Seymour IA June 20, 2013 I read on a related questions that you said the pit/seeds of all wild plums are poisonous. My question is this, can I juice the entire fruit for making jelly without removing the pit first? I have a s... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Seeding success with Penstemon cobaea from Austin June 18, 2013 I've never had much luck in harvesting seeds from foxgloves (Penstemon cobaea, I think). Whenever I open the seed casing, the seeds inside are covered with some kind of mold. What's going on, and ho... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Germinating Hibiscus martianus, Heartleaf hibiscus June 11, 2013 Is there some secret to getting Heart Leaf Hibiscus to germinate from seed? I have tried several times, but have had no luck getting them to germinate. View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer |  | |
| Germinating Penstemon tenuis, Monarda citriodora and Machaeranthera tanacetifolia Seed June 03, 2013 I am a graduate student at Texas Tech (UT Austin alumni), studying horticulture. I will be researching several wildflowers found in west Texas including Penstemon tenuis, Monarda citriodora, and Macha... View Mr. Smarty Plants' Answer | ||
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