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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Please forgive us, but Mr. Smarty Plants has been overwhelmed by a flood of mail and must take a break for awhile to catch up. We hope to be accepting new questions again soon. Thank you!

Need help with plant identification, visit the plant identification page.

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Monday - July 11, 2011

From: Nekoosa, WI
Region: Midwest
Topic: Plant Identification, Groundcovers
Title: Mystery Ground Cover in WI
Answered by: Anne Bossart

QUESTION:

I am trying to identify a ground cover plant that has started growing in my yard (I'm in central Wisconsin). It is very short, only about 1-2 inches tall and is very thick covering the ground. It has small pink flowers on it and has a very strong aroma when cut, it smells like basil or some other herb, but I'm not sure what it is. The leaves and flowers are slightly larger than the point of a pen. Could you help me identify it. I have pictures as well. Thank You.

ANSWER:

Even though you have given us a good description, we cannot id your plant for you.

We can help, though, by providing this link to our Plant Identification page that will direct you to several forums that offer that service.