Native Plants
![](../_images/smarty_plants.gif)
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.
![](../_images/mr_smarty_plants_logo_web_200w.jpg)
rate this answer
![](../_images/star_43.gif)
Saturday - May 02, 2009
From: North East, MD
Region: Mid-Atlantic
Topic: Herbs/Forbs
Title: Non-blooming blue-eyed grass in Northeast Maryland
Answered by: Barbara Medford
QUESTION:
I purchased blue eyed grass(sisyrinchium angustifolium)It was in bloom when I planted it, but has never bloomed since. It looks healthy and gets full sun, but for at least 3 years or more, it has never bloomed. Please help...ANSWER:
From our webpage on Sisyrinchium angustifolium (narrowleaf blue-eyed grass), we learned that it is NOT a grass, but rather a primitive iris, and member of the Iridaceae family. We also found out that this short-lived perennial will decline if allowed to dry out. Heavy mulch causes crown rot and rich, organic soils encourage rank, vegetative growth. Plants need to be divided at least every other year. It is native to Maryland and, while it likes semi-shaded conditions, it blooms better in the sun. What we never did learn was why it is not blooming for you. About the only suggestion we can make at this point is that you avoid fertilizing it, especially with high-nitrogen fertilizers, like you would use on a real grass. Honestly, it sounds like it does better when it's neglected a little bit, not in rich organic soils, not fertilized. Try a little benign neglect, and see if it doesn't get its act together. Plants all need to reproduce and to reproduce they must bloom and produce seeds. If life is too easy for your blue-eyed grass, it might just roll over and go back to sleep, forgetting to wake up and bloom.
More Herbs/Forbs Questions
Native plants for southwest exposure in Tulsa OK
April 24, 2008 - I want to plant something in a bed on the South side of my house with some Western exposure. The space is in a bed that would share space with a Red Tip Photinia (next to the house)& liriope( on the ...
view the full question and answer
Plantings for a slope from New Carrollton MD
June 27, 2012 - My house (Maryland, near DC) sits at the bottom of a south facing slope. The soil is very heavy clay. The grade is about 1:20 for about 100 feet (with a steeper part at the top). Part of the hill is i...
view the full question and answer
Does a cenizo really predict rain in Austin?
July 18, 2009 - Mr. Smarty Plants, folklore has it that the flowering of Cenizo (aka Barometer Bush) is a predictor of rain fall. The Cenizo in South Austin is blooming profusely right now.
Does this portend a Noac...
view the full question and answer
How to keep plants alive in a pot beside a patio waterfall.
May 13, 2013 - Mr. Smarty Plants,
I have a waterfall on my patio and I can't keep my plants alive in the flower pot next to waterfall. Is that beacuse of algae produced by waterfall? If so, can you please recomme...
view the full question and answer
Native Plants for a Shaded Patio Container in Missouri
April 17, 2015 - What kind of native plants would grow well in a pot on a fully shaded patio? I live in Kansas City, Missouri. The patio faces north and doesn't get any direct sunlight, but it gets lots of indirect...
view the full question and answer
Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today. |