Native Plants
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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.
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Monday - May 25, 2009
From: Holland, IN
Region: Midwest
Topic: Groundcovers
Title: Flowering groundcover for Indiana
Answered by: Nan Hampton
QUESTION:
I live in southern Indiana and am looking for a nice flowering groundcover that will overcome the grass. It is on a hill that is very hard to mow.ANSWER:
Mr. Smarty Plants suggests that you visit our Recommended Species page and select Indiana from the map or the pulldown menu to find a list of more than 160 commercially available native species suitable for landscaping. You can limit that list by the particular characteristics of your site such as "Light Requirement" or "Soil Moisture" by choosing the NARROW YOUR SEARCH option on the right side of the page.Since I don't know what yours site's particular light and moisture situation is, I picked out a few plants that would serve as groundcover in part shade and dry soils. You can change those criteria to fit your site and find other plants.
Arctostaphylos uva-ursi (kinnikinnick)
Coreopsis lanceolata (lanceleaf tickseed)
Echinacea purpurea (eastern purple coneflower)
Lupinus perennis (sundial lupine)
Mitchella repens (partridgeberry)
Monarda fistulosa (wild bergamot)
Rudbeckia hirta (blackeyed Susan)
More Groundcovers Questions
Natural groundcovers beneath live oaks in Austin
July 14, 2008 - We are moving to a home in NW Austin set in a forest of live oaks (15 of them). What plants are the natural groundcovers? We want to replace the 'grass' completely. There is no sun so we don't b...
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Plants for wet soils in North Carolina
October 03, 2009 - I'm looking for evergreen plants (shrubs or ground cover)that will tolerate wet conditions for the zone 8 area of North Carolina. The local garden centers here do not stock these types of plants, eve...
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Low Ground Cover for Steep, Shaded PA Site
February 17, 2014 - I am located in Downingtown, PA, right on the border between Zone 6 and 7. Please provide a recommendation of a native ground cover for the following conditions: steep slope (greater than 45%), full s...
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Kinnikinnick for a green roof
July 04, 2012 - Hi Mr. Smarty Plants,
I live just north of Seattle and want to build a green roof (outdoor kitchen) I'm concerned about the weight of the soil (saturated), drainage etc. am building from scratch and...
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Does Calyptocarpus vialis (Horseherb) compete with turf grasses
October 05, 2015 - For my yard in central Austin
Does horse herb, Calyptocarpus vialis help or damage the growth of native short grasses? The grasses include Curly Mesquite and Blue Gamma planted early in the spring or...
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