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.
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Sunday - September 07, 2008
From: Buchanan, VA
Region: Mid-Atlantic
Topic: Propagation
Title: No female, hence, no squash.
Answered by: Damon Waitt
QUESTION:
This is not a wild flower but. My grandchildren left a squash outside in a corner of a flower bed. This spring it grew. There are only male flowers, many of them, but no female, hence, no squash. Why? I separated the seedlings because there were so many but can not find any female flowers anywhere.ANSWER:
Squash, like other members of the Cucumber Family (Cucurbitaceae) have unisexual (male and female) flowers. In most squash species the male and female flowers are on the same plant (monoecy) as opposed to being on different plants (dioecy). The separation of the sexes into different flowers helps promote outcrossing between individuals. In squash, maturation of the male flowers before the female flowers (a condition called protandry) often occurs. Keep an eye on your plants as they grow older and the female flowers should start to appear.More Propagation Questions
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April 05, 2008 - Before transplanting a plant, is it a good idea to remove leaves?
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Please solve my bluebonnet summer mystery!
I established about 1500 sq feet of bluebonnets starting four years ago by scavenging seeds here and there and just scattering in the sprin...
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Timing for planting wildflower seeds in the Pacific Northwest
November 27, 2009 - Do you think it is better to sow wildflower seeds in the Pacific NW in the Fall/early Winter or Spring?
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Student project on Hudson Valley, NY native plants and ecology
January 16, 2009 - Mr. Smarty, Hi I am starting a project with a school group 4th-6th grade, that has a greenhouse. The goal is to teach children about native plants & ecology of the Hudson valley region in NY. We will ...
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Encouraging Daisies to Reappear
September 16, 2007 - Having moved into our home in the early spring of the year we hadn't seen any of the flowering plants around the place until we were living here and we were not given any info on care for them. So ...
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