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

Monday - February 08, 2010
From: Shiro, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: General Botany
Title: How to determine the gender of wax myrtles from the WFC?
Answered by: Jimmy Mills and Sean Watson
QUESTION:
Mr.Smarty Plants, have the wax myrtles that are up for sale at the Center's Spring Plant sale been sexed? I need a male plant. How can the sex be determined when the plant is young? Or can it?ANSWER:
I posed this question to Sean Watson, our nursery manager, and received this reply:
The ones the WFC has grown are from seed (all of the 4 inch and one gallon size wax myrtles) and are therefore males and females. The larger 5 gallon size wax myrtles are supplied by other wholesale nurseries and are from cuttings so they are all female. My thinking is that most folks want this plant for a screen or because it is evergreen, and will not mind having some with berries and some without since the berries are not the most significant in terms of size/color. I hope that answers your question!
Generally, the sex of a plant can't be determined until the plant flowers, which can take several years.
On the bright side, there is evidence to suggest that on some female plants, some male (staminate) flowers do occur among the female (pistilate) flowers so that some pollination can occur in the population in spite of the lack of male plants.
More General Botany Questions
Southern Live Oak Authority for Jackson MS
June 23, 2016 - Who are the foremost authorities on Southern Live Oaks? May need expert testimony to oppose cutting of 50 year-old live oaks in boulevard of Riverside Drive in Jackson, MS
view the full question and answer
Genetics of Anemone berlandieri flower colors
December 01, 2010 - Anemone heterophylla or Anemone berlandieri, Genetics.
Is the variation in the flower color due to Genetic Incomplete dominance or Codominance? The same codominance seen in carnations.
view the full question and answer
Halophytic biofilter plants native to Wisconsin
July 12, 2013 - I am trying to design a biofilter using native WI plants. These plants must be very salt tolerant and low maintenance (as this biofilter will be used to treat storm water runoff from a salt shed), so ...
view the full question and answer
Which one is huajillo and which one is guajillo?
November 19, 2013 - Recently I attended a field trip to the Leonard Garden at the Kleberg Institute in Kingsville. I took a picture of a tree that was referred to as Tenaza or huajillo. Later I took another photo of a ...
view the full question and answer
Leaf motion in still air in ON
June 25, 2012 - What causes a tree or plant to dance when the other plants around it are still and no wind???
view the full question and answer
Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today. |