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
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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Friday - June 26, 2009
From: Austin, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Grasses or Grass-like
Title: Assessment of Turffalo buffalograss
Answered by: Nan Hampton and Julie Krosley
QUESTION:
Hi, I'm in the process of planning what type of turf to get for a new home in NW Austin. Turffalo/Tech Turf has showed up as a great possibility and I saw some mention of it back on March 05, 2008. How has the installation fared since? Thanks, RyanANSWER:
As a follow-up to the March 05, 2008 question, Mr. Smarty Plants asked Julie Krosley, our senior horticulturist, for her current assessment of our Turffalo plot. Here is what she says:"Since that original question (after the wet year) the Turffalo was weakened by all of that rain and further stressed by the drought conditions we had last year. I lost some of it and had to replug those areas this past fall. I am happy to report though it is filling in nicely and looks like it will recover. I still feel though that it isn't anymore resistant to weeds than the other buffalo grasses. I would recommend using an organic pre-emergent such as corn gluten twice a year to control weeds."
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