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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Ask Mr. Smarty Plants
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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Sunday - November 24, 2013
From: Austin, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Problem Plants, Trees
Title: Frost protection for non-native citrus trees from Austin
Answered by: Barbara Medford
QUESTION:
With ice predicted, should I pick citrus, lemons, limes, satsumas that are not quite ready?ANSWER:
From Wikipedia: Citrus is a common term and genus (Citrus) of flowering plants in the rue family, Rutaceae. Citrus is believed to have originated in the part of Southeast Asia bordered by Northeast India, Burma (Myanmar) and the Yunnan province of China. Citrus fruit has been cultivated in an ever-widening area since ancient times; the best-known examples are the oranges, lemons, grapefruit, and limes.
We wish we could help you, but Mr. Smarty Plants confines his answers to questions concerning plants native to North America and in the area in which those plants are being grown; in your case, Travis County TX. We have no experience with citrus trees as all are non-native to North America. We did, however, find an article from the University of Florida on Protecting Citrus from Cold.
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