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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Tuesday - June 15, 2010
From: Montfort, WI
Region: Midwest
Topic: Plant Identification
Title: Plant Identification in Montfort WI
Answered by: Barbara Medford
QUESTION:
There is a small orange flower plant that grows wild along highways and in uncut yards in northwest Wisconsin--We are visiting in Siren, WI and have tried to dig some up and take home to SW WI. They did not grow. Our soil is clay and here it a lot of sand. What is the name of the plant and are they better in sandy soil?ANSWER:
Even with a much more complete description than this, we cannot often make an identification without pictures. Furthermore, the plant may be an escaped non-native, and not even appear in our Native Plant Database. Go to our Plant Identification site, and follow the instructions carefully for submitting a photo; be sure to get pictures of leaves, blooms, etc. We can't promise success, even then, but will try.
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