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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Tuesday - February 25, 2014
From: Smithville, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Planting, Seeds and Seeding, Soils, Grasses or Grass-like
Title: Native grass mix for Bastrop County, TX
Answered by: Barbara Medford
QUESTION:
I plan to put in a small lawn on a tract of land near Rosanky, TX in Bastrop County. There are scattered oaks but the yard space will be mostly open. Soil is basically sandy. Is there a good native grass/mix for this location?ANSWER:
Frankly, there is only one NATIVE grass seed mix for Central Texas, and that is Habiturf, developed by the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. Please read this previous Mr. Smarty Plants answer on growing in sandy soil. Then, please read this previous answer which we just published about 10 minutes ago. This answer has links to a recent Central Texas Gardener radio television program with an interview with one of the developers of Habiturf, Mark Simmons, as well as to our own website on how to prepare your soils and plant this grass.
Unfortunately, most of the grasses used in the United States are not only non-native, but some are invasive, and almost all of them use much too much water for drought-stricken Central Texas. That is why Habiturf is being developed and promoted by the Wildflower Center.
More Grasses or Grass-like Questions
Request for native grasses from Hillsboro TX
August 04, 2012 - P.S. I forgot to mention one very important fact: my neighbor specifically asked for "native grass" recommendations. He thought he was getting a native grass recommendation.
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User comment on native grass mixes from Robstown TX
March 21, 2014 - As a followup to my question on seed spreaders, native grass and prairie seed mixes seem a good fit for my location in far western Nueces County which is more semi-arrid than 30 miles away in Corpus w...
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Erosion tolerant plants for shade from Kerrville TX
August 06, 2013 - We have just cleared a lot of cedar out of a small draw and would like to know the best groundcovers, shrubs, etc. to plant to hold the soil. Deep shade most of the day.
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Trimming inland sea oats from Waco TX
January 30, 2013 - Re: Inland Sea Oats and trimming back in early spring
"It passes through most of winter a soft brown, but becomes tattered and gray by February, a good time to cut it back to the basal rosette." ...
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Native, full-sun, 4-in. evergreen grasses for Leander TX
November 07, 2011 - Help! I need a native Texas evergreen sedge/grass/ground cover for full-sun/hot/dry area between sidewalk and street. The plants will need to be kept about 4" high, if growth is higher it must be mow...
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