Native Plants
![](../_images/smarty_plants.gif)
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.
![](../_images/mr_smarty_plants_logo_web_200w.jpg)
rate this answer
![](../_images/star_20.gif)
Wednesday - July 13, 2011
From: Las Vegas, NV
Region: Rocky Mountain
Topic: Plant Identification, Shrubs
Title: Identification of shrub with purple flowers in Las Vegas, Nevada
Answered by: Nan Hampton
QUESTION:
Large purple flower shrub, flowers are on long stems. Round flowers with green leaves on the stalks, used as front yard landscaping in a new house in Las Vegas NV. Very drought tolerant, shrub grows to at least 3 feet high. Looks somewhat similar to purple amaranth but purple flowers are at the end of large stalks. Flowers turn a dull purple during summer but do not dry out and fall off. Looking for name of shrub, we want to know if we should cut off the old flowers to promote new ones or just leave the flowers alone.ANSWER:
In our Native Plant Database I did a COMBINATION SEARCH choosing "Nevada" from the Select State or Province option, "Shrub" from Habit (general appearance) and "Violet", "Purple", "Blue" and "Pink" from Bloom Characteristics–Bloom Color. I did two more searches substituting "Subshrub" and "Herb" for "Shrub" in the search. Unfortunately, I could find nothing that matched your description. That, plus the fact that you describe it as a landscape plant, makes me believe that it is probably a non-native ornamental plant. Our focus and expertise here at the Wildflower Center are with plants native to North America so we can't really identify or tell you too much about non-natives. However, you can visit our Plant Identification page to find links to several plant identification forums that can help identify plants, both native and non-native. If you have a photo, you can send it to one of these for identification. Another possibility is to try contacting the Southern Area Master Gardener Program of the University of Nevada Cooperative Extension. If it is a fairly common landscaping plant in Las Vegas, someone with the Master Gardener program is likely to know its name.
More Plant Identification Questions
Mystery plant
August 31, 2009 - mystery plant, multiple non-woody stems from a single base, thorns like a rose bush,leaves like poison ivy in sets of three with the top dark green underside pale green. thanks
view the full question and answer
Identification of all-white small plants growing in the woods in Belmont, MA.
July 21, 2009 - I have just seen a group of completely ALL-WHITE small plants growing in the woods. They have 4-8in. stalks with a kind of bell-shaped flower growing at the top. There is no green anywhere on this pla...
view the full question and answer
Hummingbird plants and Indian Hawthorn
May 13, 2008 - I live in The Woodlands in a new section of homes. I planted some hummingbird plants in full sun and they did ok last year for 4 months, then lost all their leaves and died when the winter came. At ...
view the full question and answer
Plant identification
August 17, 2009 - I am trying to identify a plant in Crocket County Texas. It looks similar to a small thistle. It has purple thorny bulbs on it, the stem and leaves also are thorny.
view the full question and answer
Identification of Cryptomeria japonica for homeowners association
May 09, 2007 - Good morning. We are wondering if Cryptomeria japonica trees can fit under the term "pine like". We used the term pine like when asking for our home owners associations approval and we put in a Cr...
view the full question and answer
Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today. |