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
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 - June 15, 2008
From: Bertram, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Plant Identification
Title: Non-blooming orange bell plant
Answered by: Barbara Medford
QUESTION:
My orange bell plant is not blooming. I live in Central Texas where it is hot. The plant has part sun, part shade. Is there any way to help it bloom?ANSWER:
We don't seem to have enough information to answer your question. Is this a name that was on a label at a nursery? Many plants are on the commercial market now that are non-native and given trade names that mean nothing in terms of identification. The only orange bells we found in our research were orange bell peppers. Botany.com has a good website on the Capsicum genus, which includes the bell peppers. There also is a pepper which is native to Texas, but its fruits are not orange, Capsicum annuum (cayenne pepper), so that's no help. If you could provide us with a picture, we might be able to identify the botanical name and then find some help for your problem. Go to the Ask Mr. Smarty Plants page, under Plant Identification in the lower right-hand corner you will find instructions for sending us pictures.
More Plant Identification Questions
Identification of shrub with white flowers in Arkansas
April 09, 2014 - I have about 15 flowering shrubs that just started blooming in a cut-over. They are about 6/7 feet tall and have an entire crown of white blooms that resemble a cross between a Dandelion and a Marigol...
view the full question and answer
Learning to identify native plants in backyard
June 28, 2011 - Please let me know how a layman like myself can identify native plants in my backyard. I don't know the plant names and don't know if they are dicots or any other technical terms (that some websites...
view the full question and answer
Keys for identification of native plants in Ohio
April 22, 2005 - Do you know of any good web sites that provide keys for the identification of native plants? I'm conducting a wetland plant inventory in southwestern Ohio.
view the full question and answer
Plant ID from San Anselmo CA
June 12, 2012 - I have a spreading ground cover that no one has been able to ID in years of searching. I have taken photos of flower and foliage.
I want to ID to try to improve site conditions and increase covera...
view the full question and answer
Flat leaf cedar, Thuja occidentalis (arborvitae)
May 23, 2007 - Hello, I am looking for the scientific name for what is commonly called flat leaf cedar. It has defined platelets, wonderful cedar smell, older trees have shaggy bark, in winter some of its sprays tu...
view the full question and answer
| Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today. |