Lantana

Lantana camara ( Common Lantana )
An evergreen shrub in tropical climates, perennial in subtropical climates and annual in cold climates, this versitile plant can reach anywhere between 2 feet to a massive 20 x 20 foot shrub with a 3 inch diameter trunk. It is sometimes used as a sheared hedge in the tropics and some of the larger forms can be trained as a tree standard. Very fast growing, Lantana will often reach up to 3 feet in height during the first year. Lantana camara is native to Central and South America. In some tropical regions it should not be grown as it can become a rampant pest and invade agricultural land ( esp. in Hawaii and Florida ). In temperate regions it is much more tame and rarely spreads on its own. The Lantana genus is part of the large Verbenaceae family. Lantana is unfortunately toxic to dogs, cats and horses to ingest and this plant should not be used where the above animals are free roaming.
The thick, wrinkled, pointed, oval leaves, up to 6 ( usually half ) inches in length, are luxuriant deep green.
The very small, tubular flowers are borne in rounded heads, up to 2 inches across, from spring through autumn. The flowers attract hummingbirds and butterflies.
Hardy zones 10 to 12 ( root hardy as perennial to zone 8 if mulched ), in full sun on well drained soil. Common Lantana is very salt, heat and wind tolerant, tolerating strong ocean breezes. They have an extensive root structure and become very drought tolerant once established. It is generally ignored by deer.
Shear young plants to encourage dense habit.
Propagate from semi-ripe cuttings taken during summer.

* photo taken on July 7 2011 in Columbia, MD


* photos taken @ U.S. Botanical Garden, Wash., DC on Aug 25 2014

'Bandana Cherry Sunrise'
Fast growing and compact in habit, reaching up to 2 x 2 feet.
The foliage is very deep green.
The flowers are a combination of yellow, orange and pink. The abundant flowers appear all summer long until autumn frost.
Hardy zones 9+, colder zones as an annual.

* photo taken on Aug 27 2021 in Elkridge, MD

* photos taken on Oct 3 2022 in Columbia, MD

* photo taken on Sep 19 2024 in Ellicott City, MD

'Bandana Lemon Zest'
Fast growing and compact in habit, reaching up to 2 x 3 feet.
The foliage is very deep green. The ovate leaves are up to 2.3 x 1.3 inches in size.
The abundant intense bright yellow flowers appear all summer long until autumn frost.
Hardy zones 9+, colder zones as an annual.

* photos taken on Aug 26 2021 in Elkridge, MD

* photos taken @ U.S. Botanical Garden, Wash., DC on Aug 25 2014

* photo taken on Sep 25 2024 in Ellicott City, MD

'Bandana Mango'
Fast growing and compact in habit, reaching up to 2 x 2 feet.
The foliage is very deep green.
The abundant intense bright to deep orange flowers appear all summer long until autumn frost.
Hardy zones 9+, colder zones as an annual.

* photos taken on Aug 26 2021 in Elkridge, MD

* photo taken on Aug 8 2023 in Columbia, MD

* photos taken on Oct 1 2024 in Columbia, MD

'Bandana Pink'
Fast growing and compact in habit, reaching up to 2 x 2 feet.
The foliage is very deep green. The toothed ovate leaves are up to 2.7 x 2.1 inches in size.
The abundant pale pink flowers appear all summer long until autumn frost.
Hardy zones 9+, colder zones as an annual.

* photo taken on Sep 10 2022 @ Smithsonian Institute, Wash, DC

'Bandana Red'
Fast growing and compact in habit, reaching up to 2 x 2 feet.
The foliage is very deep green. The toothed, ovate leaves are up to 3 x 2.2 inches in size.
The abundant intense bright red flowers appear all summer long until autumn frost.
Hardy zones 9+, colder zones as an annual.

* photos taken on July 14 2022 in Columbia, MD

* photo taken on Oct 22 2022 in Columbia, MD

* photo taken on Aug 25 2024 in Timonium, MD

* photo taken on Sep 19 2024 in Ellicott City, MD

'Carlos'
Dwarf, bushy and compact in habit, reaching up to 3 x 3 ( rarely over 2 x 2 ) feet, bearing flowers that are orange, coral and pink. The flowers appear all summer long and until autumn frosts. This cultivar is great for containers.

* photo taken on Sep 27 2019 in Columbia, MD

'Havana Full Moon'
Compact in habit, reaching up to 1.3 x 2.1 feet.
The flowers are white ( centered yellow ).

* photo taken on July 20 2022 in Columbia, MD

* photos taken on Oct 22 2022 in Columbia, MD

* photos taken on Aug 2 2023 in Columbia, MD

* photo taken on Sep 17 2023 in Columbia, MD

'Hot Blooded Red'
Vigorous but compact in habit, reaching up to 2 x 2.3 feet.
The ovate leaves are up to 3 x 2.2 inches in size.
The abundant, intense orangish-red are borne in clusters up to 2 inches wide.

* photos taken on Apr 29 2022 in Columbia, MD

* photo taken on Sep 24 2022 in Columbia, MD

* photo taken on Aug 2 2023 in Columbia, MD

* photos taken on Sep 25 2024 in Ellicott City, MD

'Landmark Gold'
Compact and bushy in habit, reaching up to 1.7 x 3.1 feet.
The foliage is deep green. The ovate leaves are up to 3 x 2 inches in size.
The abundant deep golden-yellow flowers appear in clusters, up to 1.5 inches wide, all summer long and until autumn frosts.

* photo taken on July 22 2022 in Columbia, MD

* photos taken on Sep 29 2022 in Columbia, MD

* photos taken on Sep 15 2022 in Columbia, MD

* photo taken on Sep 2 2022 in Washington, DC

* photos taken on Aug 31 2023 in Ellicott City, MD

* photos taken on Aug 13 2024 in Columbia, MD

'Landmark Red'
Vigorous but compact and bushy in habit, reaching up to 1.7 x 2 feet.
The foliage is deep green. The ovate leaves are up to 3 x 2 inches in size.
The abundant orangish-red flowers, appear in clusters up to 1.5 inches wide, all summer long and until autumn frosts.

* photos taken on Aug 16 2021 in Ellicott City, MD

* photos taken on Sep 3 2024 in Columbia, MD

'Landmark White'
Vigorous but compact and bushy in habit, reaching up to 1.7 x 3 feet.
The foliage is deep green. The ovate leaves are up to 3.7 x 2 inches in size.
The abundant pure white ( with some pale yellow in center ) flowers, appear in clusters up to 1.5 inches wide, all summer long and until autumn frosts.

* photos taken on Aug 5 2017 @ Brookside Gardens, Wheaton, MD

* photos taken on Oct 1 2020 in Columbia, MD

* photo taken on Aug 9 2024 in Columbia, MD

'Lucky Pink'
Dense and compact, reaching up to 1.4 x 1.3 feet in size.
The foliage is deep green. The ovate leaves are up to 2.5 x 1.7 inches in size.
The flowers are mostly bright pink but variable in color.
It is exceptionally heat and humidity tolerant.

* photos taken on June 27 2023 in Columbia, MD

* photo taken on Aug 25 2023 in Columbia, MD

'Miss Huff'
A hardy Lantana ( root hardy north to zone 7 ) that can reach up to 6 x 6 feet in the first year and reach a maximum size of 10 x 6 feet if not cut back by frosts ( otherwise its a perennial ).
The abundant, yellow, orange and pink flowers are borne early summer to late autumn. It is generally fruitless, eliminating potential invasiveness.

* photos taken on July 11 2014 in Washington, DC

* photos taken on Oct 21 2014 @ Smithsonian Inst., Washington, DC

* photo taken on July 27 2019 in Columbia, MD

* photos taken on Oct 30 2019 in Columbia, MD

'New Gold'
Vigorous growing, reaching a maximum size of 3 x 8 feet with rich golden-yellow flowers borne continuously. Does not produce seeds.
Root hardy north to zone 8+

* photo of unknown internet source

* photo taken on Oct 29 2018 in Columbia, MD

* photo taken on July 27 2019 in Columbia, MD

* photo taken on Sep 27 2019 in Columbia, MD

* photos taken on Nov 10 2020 @ Brookside Gardens, Wheaton, MD

'Orange Crush'
Similar to 'Miss Huff' except with orangish-red flowers. 'Miss Tara' is very similar.

* photo taken on Oct 17 2013 in Olney, MD

* photo taken on Oct 21 2014 @ Smithsonian Inst., Washington, DC

* photo taken on July 25 2015 @ Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario

* photos taken on Oct 7 2021 in Columbia, MD

'Pink Crush'
Similar to 'Miss Huff' except with pink flowers.

* photo taken on Nov 10 2020 @ Brookside Gardens, Wheaton, MD

* photo taken on Aug 18 2921 in Windsor, ON

* photos taken on Aug 29 2021 in Columbia, MD

* photo taken on Aug 1 2022 in Brookside Gardens, Wheaton, MD

'Pink Huff'
A hardy Lantana ( root hardy north to zone 7 ) that can reach up to 6 x 6 feet in the first year and reach a maximum size of 10 x 6 feet if not cut back by frosts ( otherwise its a perennial ).
The abundant, pink flowers are borne early summer to late autumn. It is generally fruitless, eliminating potential invasiveness.

* photos taken on Oct 21 2014 @ Smithsonian Inst., Washington, DC

* photo taken on Aug 9 2024 in Columbia, MD

'Radiation'
Moderate growing and dense in habit, reaching a maximum size of 6 x 6 ( rarely over 5 x 5 ) feet, with neon orange flowers.

* photo taken on July 7 2011 in Columbia, MD

* photo of unknown internet source



'Red Spread'
Compact and dense and spreading in habit, reaching up to 2.5 x 4 feet. It is great for groundcover, trailing over walls or containers.
The flowers are orange at first, turning to deep red.
Hardy zones 8 to 11

* photos taken on Sep 27 2019 in Columbia, MD

* photos taken on Oct 9 2024 in Columbia, MD

'Samantha'
Vigorous and compact in habit, reaching up to 2 x 4 feet.
The foliage is bright green with a bold bright golden-yellow edge.
Yellow flowers borne continuously and not producing seed.

* photo taken on Aug 5 2017 @ Brookside Gardens, Wheaton, MD

* photos taken on July 10 2024 @ Brookside Gardens, Wheaton, MD

'Snow White'
Upright in habit, reaching up to 3 x 7 feet as a perennial ( less as annual ).
The deep green leaves are large.
The pure white ( with yellow center ) flowers are borne on clusters, up to 1.5 inches across. Cut back after each flush of blooms to encourage repeat blooming and vigor. It does not need much deadheading since it only produces seed pods sparsly.

* photos taken on July 13 2011 in Columbia, MD



* photo taken @ Smithsonian Inst, Wash., DC on Aug 25 2014

* photo taken on Nov 19 2016 @ London Town Gardens, Edgewater, MD

* photo taken on July 8 2022 in Grand Bend, ON

* photo taken on Sep 10 2022 @ Smithsonian Institute, Wash, DC

'Spreading Sunset'
Spreading in habit, reaching up to 3 x 8 feet, bearing rounded flower heads that range from orangish-yellow to soft pink.
Hardy zones 9 to 11

Lantana montevidensis ( Trailing Lantana )
A spreading, mat-forming, evergreen shrub, reaching a maximum size of 7 x 10 ( rarely over 3 ) feet though usually much shorter. It is native to southern Brazil, Uruguay and Argentina. It is invasive and has become a weed in many regions outside its natural range where it is even known to poison cattle when it invades rangeland.
The toothed, oval leaves are mid-green.
The tiny, rose-purple ( with yellow eye ) flowers are borne on dense heads during summer in cool climates, all year in tropical regions.
Hardy zones 8b to 11 ( it can become perennial at 28 F ) in ful sun on moist, fertile, well drained soil.
Pinch tips of shoots when young to encourage bushy habit.
Propagation is from semi-ripe cuttings taken during summer or seed sown in spring.