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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Friday - April 06, 2007
From: dallas, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Wildflowers
Title: More on bluebonnets
Answered by: Damon Waitt
QUESTION:
What role did Mrs. Johnson play in preserving the bluebonnet, our state flower?ANSWER:
In her endless travels as a politician's helpmate, Lady Bird discovered that America's roadsides were becoming cluttered with billboards and junkyards, and that our nation's once vast natural beauty was quickly vanishing. Mrs. Johnson viewed roadsides as a window through which we learned about our ecological heritage. As First Lady, she recognized an opportunity to start a national revitalization effort, and she fought to make America more beautiful by restoring and protecting our natural habitats. She made headlines by planting bulbs and trees on roadsides and parkways, and called attention to the growing crisis created by habitat and species loss. In 1965, the Highway Beautification Act (known as "Lady Bird's Bill") was passed. It was the first milestone on a long list of accomplishments protecting and preserving the environment.More Wildflowers Questions
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February 13, 2014 - The past few years, my bluebonnets have been overwhelmed by tall grass. I could have solved this by mowing later, but I was always afraid of mowing new bluebonnet plants. When is the latest time I can...
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August 02, 2012 - We just got done building a house and have leveled all of the dirt piles. We do have a row of straw bales to help prevent the dirt from washing onto the neighbors property. It is the wrong time of ye...
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Can you produce hay and bluebonnets on the same field?
March 03, 2010 - Hi - We have a field that produces wild bluebonnets every spring. Is it possible to grow and bail hay in this field and not kill off our bluebonnets? Thank you.
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