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 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!

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Friday - September 15, 2006

From: Dallas, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Plant Lists
Title: Listings of the native plants in Texas
Answered by: Nan Hampton

QUESTION:

What are the native plants in the state of Texas?

ANSWER:

There are, by most counts, over 5000 species of plants in Texas. "Vascular Plants of Texas: A Comprehensive Checklist Including Synonymy, Bibliography, and Index" (Stanley D. Jones, Joseph K. Wipff, and Paul M. Montgomery. 1997. University of Texas Press) lists 5812 species.

You can see over 900 of these by going to the Native Plants Database and selecting "Narrow your search" under Combination Search in the menu. This will take you to the "Advanced Search" page where you can choose "Texas" from the Select Your State option. This will give you a list with thumbnail photographs for native plants of Texas that are included in the Native Plants Database.

You can also download a state PLANTS checklist from the USDA Plants Database.