Native Plants
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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 29, 2010
From: Fairfield, OH
Region: Midwest
Topic: Plant Identification
Title: Plant identification
Answered by: Nan Hampton
QUESTION:
I live outside of Cincinnati and I have a bush that has long yellowish leaves that grow like a spider plant. Just recently long purple things have grown in the middle of them. Is this normal or should I clip it out?ANSWER:
Our expertise and focus here at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center are with plants native to North America and your plant doesn't sound like to me any plant native to North America. If you think it is native to North America, you can send us photos and we will do our best to identify it, tell you what the 'long purple things' are and advise you. If it is not native to North America, your best would be to photograph it and submit the photos to the UBC Botanical Gardens Plant Identification Forum.More Plant Identification Questions
Identification of thorny vine in Michigan
May 21, 2013 - We have a species growing around our rural SW Michigan property that I'm trying to identify: I either see stalks up to 3 ft tall, or much longer vines if they find anchor. The most notable characte...
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Plant identification from Round Rock, TX
March 31, 2011 - Although I do not believe the tree to be native I would like to identify it if possible. This tree was found in the Round Rock area. The blossom has five white (lite pink?) petals and a "spray" of...
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Where do snake herb and skeleton-leaf goldeneye get their names?
October 05, 2014 - Dear Mr. Smarty Plants,
Where does snake herb, and skeleton leaf goldeneye get their names from? Thank you.
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Books on Lilies
August 27, 2006 - Dear Sir,
I am looking for a book covering the Lily Family as a whole, i.e., it should preferably also discuss other Genera than Lilium only. I am especially interested in Lily members occurring in t...
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Plant identification
March 15, 2012 - My daughter took the attached picture of a plant growing along a road in Austin, TX. I've searched the database and several wildflower books and can't find the flower. Can you identify it? Thanks fo...
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