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 - May 10, 2010
From: Austin, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Turf
Title: Did pre-emergent herbicide for lawn kill oak tree in Austin?
Answered by: Barbara Medford
QUESTION:
Your article in today's (May 1st)Austin American-Statesman advised against using herbicides around oaks. Does that include the "pre-emergents" that the lawn care companies use in the Spring? I had a live oak die on me and I suspect it was due to a couple of years of pre-emergent applications.ANSWER:
A general kills-everything, melts-your-sidewalk herbicide can kill just about anything that can't run away. The pre-emergent that is sprayed on grasses (which are monocots or narrow leaf plants) is intended to kill dicots, which are broadleaf plants. Guess what an oak is? Right, a broadleaf plant. We discourage the use of sprayed-on herbicides because there is always the potential of their moving on to an unintended target. Another downside of the pre-emergent is that many of the "weeds" in your (probably non-native) lawn grasses are also grasses, often native grasses, but nevertheless unwanted. They will survive and thrive on the pre-emergent spraying, because they are monocots, not the dicots for which the herbicide is intended. Whether this is actually what caused your live oak to die, we can't possibly say, but it sure couldn't have done it any good. And we also discourage letting outside contractors make the decisions about what should be applied in your garden. They may not know what side effects that application might have, they are just doing their job.More Turf Questions
Grass mixture for Spicewood TX
August 14, 2012 - I want to seed a bare sand limestone area about 2 acres in size. Assuming "normal" Texas hill country weather and the availability of moderate water for sprinkling is there one mixture that you reco...
view the full question and answer
How to control Yellow Woodsorrel in Habiturf?
March 19, 2013 - Last year we planted Habiturf in our front lawn and prepared the ground as directed with organic compost. This year we have an infestation of low growing yellow oxalis which we believe came in with t...
view the full question and answer
Mixing of bluebonnets and buffalograss in a lawn
April 22, 2007 - I have moved into a house with a yard full of weeds. I would like to plant Buffalograss but understand Buffalograss is sparce and difficult to keep the weeds out. So, I was considering mixing it wit...
view the full question and answer
Mowing the multi-species buffalo grass lawn
June 23, 2011 - I am planning on putting in a buffalo grass lawn in an area that is little used. I read that a mix of buffalo, blue grama, and curly mesquite is good for better cover but I am concerned about the blu...
view the full question and answer
Low maintenance, water and height lawn
September 10, 2007 - We would like to replace our lawn that covers a large area of our front and back yard and is watered daily and twice a day in summertime with drought resistant plants. Mr. Smarty Plants, could you rec...
view the full question and answer
| Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today. |