Ask Mr. Smarty Plants

We can help you check the leaves you have found against trees native to Texas. Go to our Native Plant Database, and on that page, to Combination Search. Select on Texas for the state and "tree" for Habit, then click on "Submit Combination Search." When we did this we got 271 possibilities. Each one has a weblink to the page on that specific tree and a thumbnail photo. Or, if you know the common or scientific name of the trees whose leaves you have already collected, again, go to the Native Plant Database and type the name in the "Scientific or common names" box at the top of the page, and click on "Go." Either way, you should be able to get pictures and information on the tree. If it is not in our database, it is probably not native. At the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, we are devoted to the care and study of plants native not only to North America but to the area in which they are being grown. Of course, many of these trees will be native to other states as well, but at least you will know the trees you find in our database are Texas natives.