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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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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Thursday - February 12, 2009

From: richmond, VA
Region: Mid-Atlantic
Topic: Plant Identification
Title: ID for Dill-like weed
Answered by: Joe Marcus

QUESTION:

I live in Richmond,VA.and have a man made dam for a pond fed by several springs. There's a scruffy weed that looks like dill weed when it emerges in the spring but is so tough that I can't pull it up by hand and it has taken over the banks. I don't know what it is or how to get rid of it short of extensive round up. please advise.

ANSWER:

It is very difficult - and usually not possible - for Mr. Smarty Plants to identify a plant from a written description. However, we will be happy to try to ID your mystery plant from good-quality digital images. Usually a series of well-focused, close-up images of the plant's leaves, flowers, stems, fruit (if available - and especially if the plant is related to dill), and an overall shot of the plant yield the best results. Please go to the Ask Mr. Smarty Plants Plant Identification page for specific details on submitting images for ID. Once we know the identity of the plant, we can advise you on control strategies.

Native Plants

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Thursday - February 12, 2009

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