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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Sunday - August 04, 2013

From: East Kingston, NH
Region: Northeast
Topic: Plant Identification, Vines
Title: Report on object glowing in tree in New Hampshire
Answered by: Nan Hampton

QUESTION:

Hello again Mr Smartpants. I commented about a purple glow coming from a tree in previous comments. Since then they have multiplied and are spreading to different trees. We believe we may have it narrowed down to a whitish caterpillar. It itself is not glowing but the glow is all around it. The one was found in my maple tree. We are still trying to discover the source. I am going to try to contact environmentalist in NH to see if we can get any answers.

ANSWER:

Thank you for letting us know. How fascinating! I will check with a couple of entomologist friends here in Texas to see if they know of insect larvae, other than the glowworms, that glow or leave a residue behind that might glow.