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 - August 10, 2010
From: Merritt Island, FL
Region: Southeast
Topic: Non-Natives
Title: Bark splitting on non-native Royal Poinciana in tree in Merritt Island FL
Answered by: Barbara Medford
QUESTION:
Information on splitting bark along the branches like an overstuffed sausage: A royal Poinciana tree, about 5 years old. The upper branches are doing this, although I'm afraid little splits or tears are starting to appear on the main trunk. It gets watered regularly on a re-use sprinkling system. Thank you,ANSWER:
As we told you in our earlier answer, we probably can't give you much help because the Delonix regia, Royal Poinciana, is native to Madagascar. The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center restricts its answers to plants native not only to North America but to the place in which they are being grown. It is a tropical plant which has been cultivated in Florida, so we found an article on the Delonix regia from Floridata. By Googling on "splitting bark on delonix regia" we found some more articles where you might get help. One of the more promising was from the AgroForestry Tree Database. You might look around your area for another tree and try to find out from the owners of that if they know what the problem is. Beyond that, you're back to the Extension Office or a licensed, certified arborist.More Non-Natives Questions
Problems with non-native Cleyera in Georgia
September 30, 2008 - Dear Mr. Smarty Plants,
I had a landscaper plant 4 Cleyera around my front porch. I have had them for about 9 years now and they are very hardy, each one being about 4 feet in width, 5 feet high ...
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Can non-native Epiphyllum (Orchid Cactus) be grown in Round Rock, Texas?
July 01, 2014 - Can the Epiphyllum (Orchid Cactus) be grown in the Round Rock Texas area or is this area too hot for it?
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Blueberries and non-native squash in Fort Worth
April 15, 2010 - Blueberries in North Central Texas-Fort Worth In sun or shade? Got only male blossoms on my squash last year why?
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Will non-native gazania bloom in winter?
August 03, 2010 - Dear Mr. Smarty Plants,
I am quite familiar with Gazania and l-o-v-e it as a summer plant. My question is: while I know it may/will survive the winters here, will it actually be blooming during the ...
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Non-native smoketree for California City, CA
June 28, 2010 - I was wondering if you could tell me if it would be a good or bad idea to plant a Smoke Tree (most likely European) in the vicinity of a septic tank. We are looking for something which will provide a...
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