Lantana montevidensis

Lantana brings vibrant colour with trailing clusters of purple blooms from April to October. A magnet for butterflies and pollinators, it is a striking, low- maintenance choice for high-impact planting.

Trailing lantana flowers almost continuously in the Mediterranean climate, producing small clusters of magenta-purple, white or yellow flowers from spring through late autumn, with peaks in May–June and September–October. In coastal frost-free microclimates it flowers year-round. The flowers attract bees and butterflies in constant numbers; small black fruits follow and are mildly toxic. The pungently aromatic mid-green leaves are evergreen in mild winters, dropping below -3°C. Hardy to -5°C with the plant regrowing from the base, lantana is exceptionally drought-tolerant, salt-tolerant and undemanding once established.

Trailing lantana grows 20–40 cm tall and 60–100 cm wide, with long flexible stems that drape attractively over edges. Use cascading from raised planters, retaining walls, roof gardens and terracotta pots; as a long-flowering ground cover on sloping banks and along sunny path edges; or as a flowering carpet beneath taller shrubs and small trees. The magenta-purple form combines beautifully with silver Westringia, Convolvulus cneorum and Helichrysum italicum; with the yellow of Bulbine frutescens and Euryops pectinatus; and with the blue of Plumbago auriculata and Salvia rosmarinus. Cut back hard in late winter to maintain density. The plant is considered invasive in some warm-climate regions but well-behaved in cooler Mediterranean conditions.