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.
Did you know you can access the Native Plant Information Network with your web-enabled smartphone?
Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.
rate this answer
Sunday - July 06, 2014
From: Georgetown, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Invasive Plants, Problem Plants
Title: Is Ruellia aggressive?
Answered by: Nan Hampton
QUESTION:
Is Ruellia aggressive?ANSWER:
There are 5 native species of Ruellia in the Central Texas area. All of these occur in or adjacent to Williamson County. None of these could be said to be aggressive or invasive. These 5 species are:
Ruellia drummondiana (Drummond's ruellia) Here are more photos and information from the School of Biological Sciences, University of Texas at Austin.
Ruellia humilis (Fringeleaf wild petunia) Here is more information from Missouri Botanical Garden.
Ruellia metziae (White ruellia) Here is more information from BackyardNature.
Ruellia nudiflora (Violet ruellia) Here is more information from the Image Archive of Central Texas Plants and Southeastern Arizona Wildflowers.
Ruellia occidentalis (Western wild petunia)
However, the non-native Mexican species, Ruellia caerulea [synonyms=R. brittoniana, R. simplex, R. simplex] (Britton's petunia) is on the Texas Invasives list and the University of Florida's Center for Aquatic and Invasive Plants list and is definitely aggressive. Its seed dispersal mechanism is one reason that it is able to invade new areas so easily—the seed capsule explodes and the seeds can fly long distances, as far as 30 feet. Ruellia caearulea is the petunia most likely to be sold in large commercial nurseries.
From the Image Gallery
More Problem Plants Questions
Defense against poison ivy from The Woodlands TX
March 24, 2014 - Hi and thank you in advance for your help.
My husband is allergic to Poison Ivy, Oak, Sumac, or something in our yard. We need someone who is very knowledgeable to come and identify any poisonous pla...
view the full question and answer
Eliminating silverleaf nightshade from Albuquerque NM
June 07, 2014 - I have silverleaf nightshade in my yard and would like to eradicate it (yeah, I know, good luck!) or at least control it. Do you have any suggestions?
view the full question and answer
A method for killing nandina and ligustrum with herbicide
October 19, 2012 - Is there an effective herbicide that can be painted on the stumps of Nandina and Wax-leaf ligustrum to keep them from growing back?
Thanks so much!
view the full question and answer
Need help fighting grass burs in La Grange, TX.
January 22, 2013 - I have 4 acres of wildflowers planted in my front yard. Unfortunately, grassburs have crept in & I need to control them with a pre-emergent. Will this keep the wildflowers from blooming? Also, would l...
view the full question and answer
Removal of weeds in buffalograss mix in Houston
June 15, 2009 - I recently attempted to seed a small lawn area with a buffalo/blue grama grass mix, unfortunately for me the area has been hit hard with weeds.
Is there an environmentally friendly method to reduce...
view the full question and answer
Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today. |