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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 is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.

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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!

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Sunday - April 22, 2007

From: schenectady, NY
Region: Northeast
Topic: Non-Natives
Title: Recovery of non-native star jasmine from freezing in New York
Answered by: Nan Hampton

QUESTION:

Hello, I have a star jasmine plant that was left outside over the winter. Will it come back to life? Thank you.

ANSWER:

Our focus and expertise at the Wildflower Center is with plants native to North America and, unfortunately, star jasmine (Trachelospermum jasminoides) is a native of China, not North America. However, we can tell you that the USDA hardiness zone rating for the star jasmine is 8-10 (annual minimum temperature of 10 to 40 degrees F); whereas, except for Long Island which is in zone 7, New York's hardiness zones range from 3 to 6 (-40 to 0 degrees F). So, unhappily, I'm afraid your star jasmine probably is done for. However, you could try cutting it back and hope for the best.

 
 

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