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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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Saturday - March 05, 2011

From: Pleasanton, CA
Region: California
Topic: Herbs/Forbs
Title: Care for Monardella undulata var. frutescens from Pleasanton CA
Answered by: Barbara Medford

QUESTION:

Inquiry about care of the plant Monardella undulata var frutescens "Jokerst." Full Sun? Soil? etc Thanks, Smarty!

ANSWER:

You nearly had Mr. Smarty Plants stumped there. There are 9 species of Monardella listed in our Native Plant Database; this is not one of them. We did find one article from Annie's Annuals Monardella undulata var. frutescens, which answers some of your questions. Since we found no mention of a selection 'Jokerst,' we tried searching on that name alone. This website on the Jim Jokerst Field Botany Award, named after a field botanist in California, is about the best clue we could find on where that name came from.  The first website we referenced says it has been considered a rare plant in California since 1997, and we would have no idea where you could obtain them, if you were interested in growing them.

 

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