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
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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Monday - March 22, 2004
From: Dallas, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Grasses or Grass-like
Title: Low maintenance native plants for sun in Dallas
Answered by: Nan Hampton
QUESTION:
What low maintenance ground cover would you recommend for a sunny backyard in Dallas?ANSWER:
Dallas, TX is in the heart of a region known as the Blackland Prairie, and buffalo grass would literally be right at home. It is drought tolerant, requires full sun, grows to about 6 inches high and can be mown infrequently. To learn more about buffalo grass, you can read and download an article about Native Lawns from our Native Plant Library. Other plants ground covers that may work for you include shade tolerant plants: Pigeonberry (Rivina humilis), Texas sedge (Carex texensis), meadow sedge (Carex perdentata), and cedar sedge (Carex planostachys). Find out more information by researching through our Native Plants Database, a service of our Native Plant Information Network.More Grasses or Grass-like Questions
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September 07, 2013 - What would you say are the 3 to 5 BEST native garden plants for south central Oklahoma?
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Tall native grasses for privacy in Central Texas
June 29, 2013 - Hi-
I am looking for a grass that will grow tall and be thick for privacy. I live here in Austin east of 35. Obviously something draught tolerant would be great! Thank you!
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When to harvest native grass seeds?
May 29, 2015 - We are trying to restore native grasses to a small pasture between Oak Hill and Dripping Springs. Last spring (2014), we seeded a mix of sideoats grama, little bluestem, dahl bluestem, and sprangleto...
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Possibility of using weeping love grass on property in Keller, Texas
April 19, 2008 - What do you know about "Weeping Love Grass"? We have heard that it does not require watering (once the roots are established, fertilizing, nor frequent mowing. So we decided to plant it on our 2-a...
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Is Milium effusum 'aureum' native to North America from Iowa City, IA
July 23, 2013 - I have seen the cultivar grass milium effusm aureum described as a native of both Europe and the N. America. Both continents HAVE a subspecies of m. effusum. Which is more accurate; is MEA a cultivar ...
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