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.
Did you know you can access the Native Plant Information Network with your web-enabled smartphone?
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.
rate this answer
Sunday - August 19, 2012
From: Fairview, NC
Region: Southeast
Topic: Erosion Control, Grasses or Grass-like, Herbs/Forbs, Wildflowers
Title: Slope Erosion control for Fairview NC
Answered by: Larry Larson
QUESTION:
Please recommend plants to help with soil erosion on a slope. The soil is red clay and area gets full sun. The slope is approximately 12' x 12'. I live in Fairview, NCANSWER:
That’s a small area! As a general approach, the best plants to stabilize a slope and prevent erosion are plants like grasses that have fibrous root systems and shrubs and perennials that spread with runners to form thickets. For that area, one or two shrubs at most would fit.
Here are two previous answers that will give you an idea of some choices. This one is a very similar earlier question about a NC creek bank. This one concerns erosion control near Charlotte.
From those two messages we can recommend these grasses for full sun and clay soil: Andropogon glomeratus (Bushy bluestem), Carex texensis (Texas sedge), Schizachyrium scoparium (Little bluestem), Sorghastrum nutans (Indiangrass)
I also like to scan native plants that might add for this specific situation in addition to those suggested previously. Here is a link to the North Carolina Collection, these collections are lists of natives to your aea that can be sorted for certain characteristics. Here is a selection of wildflowers; these should help anchor the slope while also adding some seasonal color:
Coreopsis tinctoria (Plains coreopsis)
Baptisia australis (Blue wild indigo)
Conoclinium coelestinum (Blue mistflower)
Lobelia cardinalis (Cardinal flower)
Monarda fistulosa (Wild bergamot)
From the Image Gallery
More Herbs/Forbs Questions
Is there a purple passion hibiscus?
May 27, 2009 - Hello! I bought a climbing vine in a hanging basket that looks like a passion flower vine to me. However, I was told that it was a "purple passion hibiscus." I cannot find such a flower on the inter...
view the full question and answer
Forget-me-nots choking a spring in Bethlehem PA
June 20, 2013 - Hi Mr. Smarty Plants,
I am restoring a native plant area along a spring that feeds directly into our local creek.
Right now the spring is becoming choked with forget-me-nots, that I am trying ...
view the full question and answer
Need plants to replace cedars on a 40 degree slope in Boerne, TX.
August 28, 2012 - My backyard is a roughly 40 degree slope that is covered with cedars. The slope is basically all rock, what can I grow here to replace the cedar which drink too much water. I would still like the area...
view the full question and answer
Plants for a Shaded Slope in Philadelphia
April 17, 2015 - I have a small slope along the North side of my house in a suburb of Philadelphia. A small maple tree grows there but most of it gets no sun at all (a large segment is under the tree). I had the soil ...
view the full question and answer
Container plants for part shade in Bee Cave TX
June 18, 2013 - Dear Mr Smarty Pants,
I am looking for plants that will thrive on my covered porch in 3 tall planters. These are meant to help me block an unattractive view out my living room window, so they must...
view the full question and answer
| Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today. |