Explore Plants
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.
Can't find the answer in our existing FAQs, submit a question to Mr. Smarty Plants.
Need help with plant identification, visit the plant identification page.
rate this answer
Monday - January 02, 2012
From: Austin, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Meadow Gardens, Wildflowers
Title: Preparing for planting wildflower meadow in Austin
Answered by: Barbara Medford
QUESTION:
We are in the midst of prepping beds for wildflower plantings in the spring. We spent the last month pulling up our existing lawn and invasive grasses so we are now wondering how to secure the beds for the next few months until we can plant wildflower seeds. Do we put a weed barrier down and then plant wildflower seeds above? If so, how much soil would we need on top of the weed barrier? Or, should we place some plastic down for now until we can plant in the spring? I am concerned about the invasive grasses returning and then needing to spend additional time removing them again. Thank you for your time, Shannon WiseANSWER:
We are a little puzzled about the best way to answer your question because, ordinarily, wildflowers are planted in the Fall in Central Texas. For example, bluebonnets are already producing rosettes from the seeds they dropped in late Summer, and will be blooming before February 1. It is always advisable to plant seeds at approximately the same time as the parent plant would have been dropping those seeds.
So, since some very good material has already been written by people smarter than we are about this kind of gardening, we are going to refer you to some information from the Wildflower Center and other sources on Meadow Gardening, which is what we believe you want to do. You may have to revise your timing or change your plant selection in order to fit in with the needs of native wildflowers, but once you get everything going, it should work out. This is a lot of reading with some repetition, but we hope you will take advantage of it. Here are some of the references we would like you to look at:
How-To Articles:
A guide to native plant gardening
Caring for your new native plants
Large scale wildflower planting - getting started
Previous Mr. Smarty Plants Answers:
Getting rid of invasive grasses
Eliminating grasses for native plants
Replacing grass with native grasses and wildflowers
More Wildflowers Questions
When do you put out bluebonnet seeds in Bastrop, TX?
April 17, 2012 - When do you put out bluebonnet seeds?? I hear fall but don't the seeds pop out of dried up plants in early summer?
view the full question and answer
Best planting time for wildflower seeds in Texas
September 08, 2006 - My husband bought a large amount of wildflower seeds at the Ladybird Johnson's Wildflower Center in Austin, Texas several months ago, but neglected to ask when to plant them. Some were Bluebonnets a...
view the full question and answer
Trimming back wildflower beds in Cody Wyoming
February 20, 2011 - I live in Cody Wyoming and I have some wildflower beds in front of my house that didn't get trimmed back this summer...they look like swamp plants now, super nasty. Should I trim them now?
view the full question and answer
Plants for cleared area by creek
October 10, 2008 - Hi Mr. Smarty Pants. My front "yard" is about 2 1/2 sloping acres with a wet weather creek at the bottom. It has been recently cleared of cedar. The cedar is now shredded and acts as a cover to he...
view the full question and answer
Germination of Texas wildflowers in jiffy pots
April 26, 2007 - My daughter is planning to grow a Texas Wildflower (indoor for starters) garden for a project. We recently purchased seeds from your store. Will planting them in jiffy pots be sufficient to sprout t...
view the full question and answer
 |
Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today. Mr. Smarty Plants wants you to be his Facebook friend. Click the Facebook icon to add yourself to Mr. Smarty Plants list of friends. |
