Host an Event Volunteer Join Tickets

Support the plant database you love!

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.

Help us grow by giving to the Plant Database Fund or by becoming a member

Did you know you can access the Native Plant Information Network with your web-enabled smartphone?

Share

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.

Search Smarty Plants
See a list of all Smarty Plants questions

Please forgive us, but Mr. Smarty Plants has been overwhelmed by a flood of mail and must take a break for awhile to catch up. We hope to be accepting new questions again soon. Thank you!

Need help with plant identification, visit the plant identification page.

 
rate this answer
Not Yet Rated

Friday - April 04, 2014

From: Burton, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Plant Identification
Title: Vine with wine-colored flowers in Washington County, TX
Answered by: Joe Marcus

QUESTION:

I'm trying to identify a deep purple wine colored flowering vine in Washington County, Texas. It looks very similar to Texas wisteria, but it is something else. I've seen them growing in vineyards at the ends of rows of the grape plants.

ANSWER:

It is usually very difficult to identify plants based on short, written descriptions.  This identification is no exception.  A couple of native possibilities that come to mind are Wisteria frutescens and Clematis pitcheri.  

If neither of these species are your mystery plant, you might try doing a combination search in the NPIN Plants Database.  Select Texas in the "Select State or Province" box and select Vine in the "Habit (general appearance)" box.  Then click on the "Submit combination Search" button.  The search will yield about 162 possibilities, but you can scroll through them fairly quickly and perhaps find the ID you seek.

If you don't find the plant you're looking for there, your mystery plant is likely a non-native species.  In that case, we recommend sending a plant ID request to the UBC Forums for potential identification.

 

From the Image Gallery


American wisteria
Wisteria frutescens

Purple leatherflower
Clematis pitcheri

More Plant Identification Questions

Identification of strange dark green blobs
February 03, 2012 - In my back yard I have a type of plant with no roots only around in the summer and when it rains. It looks like a person took a piece lettuce and put way too much water into it and wadded it up. It ...
view the full question and answer

Dodder
April 06, 2012 - I have seen patches of Bluebonnets that are covered with a stringy,rubbery,orange substance that seems to be choking out the particular patch. It wraps itself around the flowers,completely covering th...
view the full question and answer

Plant Identification
October 20, 2009 - I have encountered a plant (two growing side by side) in our wooded back yard. It came up on its own, is about two feet tall, has leaves resembling that of an Angel's trumpet, about 4-5" long, jagge...
view the full question and answer

Possible identification of common mullein in New York
July 06, 2007 - OK I have a monster size plant, growing beside my patio, looked weedlike similar to a burdock when young, but different and interesting. So we let it grow its now about 7'2" tall grows about 2-3" ...
view the full question and answer

Plant identification of shrub with thorns and purple flowers
July 05, 2011 - I have a small tree or shrub, it has very small or thin thorns on the branches. It blooms in April / May. The flowers are purple. My mother-in-law said that it has been around for over 100 years, b...
view the full question and answer

Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today.