Trailing Lantana Growth

Plant Description

• Trailing lantana has a sprawling habit. The plant forms into clumps averaging 2 feet tall and up to 5 feet wide. It is multi-branched with thin, vinelike, woody stems. Foliage is green, thin, serrated and 1 inch long. Crushed foliage omits an unpleasant smell. Lavender flowers form into 1-inch clusters resembling a small flower bouquet. In continuously warm regions, the flowers bloom all year. In cooler regions, the lantana blooms in summer until the winter frosts. Various cultivars have white, pink or mixed-colored flower heads. Small, black berries follow the flowering and are toxic if ingested.

Growth Requirements

• Gardeners living within USDA plant hardiness zones 8 through 10 can grow trailing lantana as a perennial. The plant is tolerant to growing in sun or shade, with the brightest conditions producing the most abundant blooms. It prefers soils that are lightweight and drain well. If you're planting it inside a container, use a lightweight potting mix. Planting trailing lantana in heavy, nondraining soils causes root rot and the plant's decline. If you're starting multiple plants in the landscape, allow approximately 3 feet between each. This allows appropriate air circulation and cuts down on possible growth problems.

Care

• When grown in its preferred conditions, trailing lantana is a low-maintenance and durable plant. It has a moderate drought tolerance. Saturating the roots with two weekly water irrigations produces the best plant growth and the most flowers. The plant is cold-tolerant to 20 degrees Fahrenheit. Frosty temperatures cause leaf drop and the plant may die to the ground. It will usually regrow in spring when temperatures warm. To protect container-grown plants during cold weather, gardeners should transfer containers indoors to a sunny location. Trim to control the lantana's size or shape. Prune off frost damaged branches in spring. The plant tolerates severe pruning done when the growth season is over. If pests become a problem, treat weeping lantana with insecticides safe for use on the plant.

Landscape Uses

• Trailing lantana's high tolerance to salt spray makes it suitable in seaside locations. With its vinelike habit, the plant works well in hanging baskets or containers where it can vine over the sides. The dense, flowering mounds work well as ground covers, along walkways or as border plants. Its year-round flowers make it useful in mixed gardens. Butterflies are attracted to the flower clusters, making trailing lantana a suitable host plant in butterfly and nature gardens.