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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.

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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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Wednesday - September 14, 2005

From: Elkhart, IN
Region: Midwest
Topic: Shrubs
Title: Texas Sage in Indiana
Answered by: Joe Marcus

QUESTION:

I was living in Texas and now I have moved to Indiana. I would love to have some Texas Sage here. is it possible?

ANSWER:

One of the problems with common names is that many are shared by more than one species of plant. I am going to surmise that the Texas Sage you're referring to is Leucophyllum frutescens, also known as Cenizo, Purple Sage, Texas Silverleaf and Texas Rangers. Leucophyllum frutescens is native to South Texas and will not survive the rainier, colder winters of Indiana.

Another Texas Sage, Salvia texana, is also a South Texas native and would suffer the same fate in Indiana as Leucophyllum frutescens.

Since you can't live in Texas for now, we would suggest that you look into native Indiana plant species for your garden there. You can find lots of information on Indiana plant species on the Native Plant Information Network. There, you can search our Native Plants Database by state and get a list and information on plants that are more adapted to your area.
 

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