Lantana is one of my favorite annuals to grow in containers. It blooms all summer with little care in hot sunny locations. Deer won’t touch it, and it is a butterfly magnet.

Lantana camara are the most commonly available species. They come in reds, yellows, oranges, pinks, and white. Lantana flowers are often bicolored or change from one color to another as the flower matures. You may also occasionally stumble across Lantana montevidensis in nurseries. This is the trailing variety of Lantana and is also well suited for containers.

Caring for Lantana

Lantana is very drought tolerant but will perform best if given regular water and a monthly feeding. Allow the soil to dry out slightly in between waterings. Use a high phosphorous fertilizer (the middle number on the fertilizer package).

It thrives in hot, sunny locations, making it perfect for those areas where more sensitive flowers get baked. No deadheading is required, but you may want to occasionally cut back unruly stems to keep the plant looking tidy. Some people are sensitive to the rough leaves, so wear gloves when handling these plants.

Some Lantana varieties can get quite large! Check the tag before purchasing to make sure you’re getting a plant that is suited for your container size. There are several varieties that have come to market over the past decade that stay more compact like Patriot Cowboy and Patriot Rainbow.

Lantana fills a container nicely on its own, but can be used in mixed plantings if the other plants are also aggressive. Some good companion plants would be Ornamental Grasses and Sweet Potato Vine. Lantana is also commonly available as a standard (a plant pruned so it grows with a single trunk, like a little tree).

Risks

Lantana is considered invasive in many frost-free areas of the world, and is not a suitable choice for those of you who live in warm climates like Southern Florida, Texas, and Hawaii. Lantana can grow into a large shrub in these areas and have begun crowding out native species, so please make responsible choices when plant shopping and only buy sterile varieties of Lantana or none at all.

Also, the berries and leaves are poisonous to both humans and animals, so keep this plant out of reach from young children and pets, or look for sterile varieties that don’t produce berries.

While deer stay away from this rough-leaved plant, rabbits will chew on the stems. Keep your containers out of reach of those sharp-toothed bunnies, as well!