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.
Did you know you can access the Native Plant Information Network with your web-enabled smartphone?
Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.

rate this answer

Saturday - March 30, 2013
From: Clarkridge, AR
Region: Southeast
Topic: Non-Natives, Edible Plants, Trees
Title: Will corn fall victim to allelopathy from hackberry in Clarkridge AR
Answered by: Barbara Medford
QUESTION:
Will my corn be inhibited by a nearby hackberry and if so would it help to cut it down? I understand that sometimes the soil is full of the chemicals the tree produces.ANSWER:
What you are probably referring to is allelopathy, which is the production of chemicals in some plants that inhibit growth in competing plants nearby. This article from Cornell University includes this statement:
"One of the most famous allelopathic plants is Black Walnut (Juglans nigra). The chemical responsible for the toxicity in Black Walnut is Juglone (5 hydroxy-1,4 napthoquinone) and is a respiration inhibitor. Solanaceous plants, such as tomato, pepper, and eggplant, are especially susceptible to Juglone. These plants, when exposed to the allelotoxin, exhibit symptoms such as wilting, chlorosis (foliar yellowing), and eventually death. Other plants may also exhibit varying degrees of susceptibility and some have no noticeable effects at all. Some plants that have been observed to be tolerant of Juglone include lima bean, beets, carrot, corn, cherry, black raspberry, catalpa, Virginia creeper, violets, and many others."
Black walnut isn't the only tree that produces juglone. This chemical is also secreted in smaller amounts by English walnut, hickory and pecan trees.Other trees with allelopathic properties include tree-of-heaven, sugar maple, hackberry, American sycamore, American elm, southern wax myrtle, cottonwood, black cherry, sassafras, red oak and black locust.
So, we know about Black Walnut not being a threat to your corn, now to find out if Celtis laevigata (Sugar hackberry), which is a member of the Ulmaceae (elm) family, could exibit allelopathy. We found this list of pests in corn:
- Spotted Cucumber Beetles
- Flea Beetles
- Cutworms
- Corn Rootworms
- Raccoons
Frankly, we think any of them would be worse than a nearby hackberry. Since the center of origin of Zea mays (corn) is believed to be native to Mexico or Central America, we don't know too much about it. If your (native) hackberry is shading the corn, you might want to think about it, but otherwise, we feel the corn is safe.
From the Image Gallery
More Edible Plants Questions
Smarty Plants on wild edible plants
July 28, 2005 - Do you have classes or information on identifying wild edible plants that could be found in Texas?
view the full question and answer
Dog eats Celtis laevigata, sugar hackberry
May 21, 2012 - This is an odd question but I am a biologist and have for years notice an odd behavior in my Golden Retriever. When he gets stomach distress or something makes him nervous like an incoming thunderstor...
view the full question and answer
Smarty Plants on Texas cherry tomato
April 24, 2005 - We just bought 2 Texas cherry tomato plants at the plant sale. We have to container garden in a walled courtyard due to deer. (Would deer be attracted to the plants in a garden with herbs and high de...
view the full question and answer
Wine from Ampelopsis arborea?
September 06, 2006 - Hello, can you eat or make wine from the fruit of Ampelopsis arborea? I have found a few vines that are very fruitful and are ready to pick!
view the full question and answer
Mulching vegetables with straw
June 13, 2007 - I have a small garden with 4 different veggies, tomatoes, hot peppers, squash & cucumbers. which plants is it OK to put straw under? which plants will straw hurt the stalks or other possibilities? tha...
view the full question and answer
Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today. |