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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

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 - December 07, 2004

From: Houston, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Wildflowers
Title: Smarty Plants on wildflower guides
Answered by: Nan Hampton

QUESTION:

Can you recommend a field guide to Texas plants?

ANSWER:

There are several excellent wildflower guides that cover the entire state. Two of these are available from Wild Ideas, the Wildflower Center store, and can be ordered online. They are:

1. Ajilvsgi, Geyata. 2002. Wildflowers of Texas. Fredricksburg, TX: Shearer Publishing Co.

2. Loughmiller, Campbell and Lynn Loughmiller. 1992. Texas Wildflowers. Austin: University of Texas Press.

Another field guide which should be available at local book stores or in internet bookstores such as Amazon or Barnes & Noble is:

3. Tull, Delena and George Miller. 2003. Lone Star Field Guide to Wildflowers, Trees, and Shrubs of Texas. Lone Star Books.

For Texas trees there are several field guide choices in print. The following two are available through the Wildflower Center through the Wild Ideas Store and can be ordered online:

4. Stahl, Carmine and Ria McElvaney. 2003. Trees of Texas: An Easy Guide to Leaf Identification. Texas A&M Press.

5. Leslie, Patty and Paul Cox. 1988. Texas Trees: A Friendly Guide. Corona Publishing.

Another tree identification book for Texas that should be available to purchase or order at your local bookstore or online from Barnes & Noble or Amazon is:

6. Simpson, Benny. 2002 A Field Guide to Texas Trees. Houston: Gulf Publishing.
 

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