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.

Help us grow by giving to the Plant Database Fund or by becoming a member

Did you know you can access the Native Plant Information Network with your web-enabled smartphone?

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.

Search Smarty Plants

See a list of all Smarty Plants questions

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.

rate this answer

Not Yet Rated

Monday - September 30, 2013

From: Austin, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Plant Identification
Title: Identity of shrubs in Austin neighborhood
Answered by: Nan Hampton

QUESTION:

I have run across two beautiful bushes in our neighborhood. They have flowering branches that daisy-chain out like a fountain. No one can tell me what they are. They are located in front and on the west side of a duplex at 8811 Springmail Circle. This duplex is on my street but on the other side of the street and at the other end. It is on the corner of Springmail and Anderson MIll Road. I was wondering if you know or could help me get a name for these bushes. How can I send three pictures I took yesterday evening.

ANSWER:

Our focus and expertise here at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center are with plants native to North America and the plants you describe are very unlikely to be native plants since they are growing in association with lawns and residences. They are most likely non-native introduced cultivars and not really in our purview.

The only plant that I can think of that has a growth habit similar to your description is Jasminum mesnyi (Chinese jasmine) that, as the name implies, is a native of China. I do know that these shrubs occur around the Austin area. Here are more photos from Plantas y Jardin. It would be helpful to know what color the flowers on the shrubs are. The ones on the Chinese jasmine are yellow.