Lantana montevidensis
Encyclopedia
Lantana montevidensis is a species of lantana
known by many common names, such as: trailing lantana, weeping lantana, creeping lantana, small lantana, purple lantana or trailing shrubverbena.
This lantana is native
to South America
.
with oval-shaped green leaves. With support it have a climbing 'vine
' form, when on edge a trailing form, and on the flat a groundcover form..
The inflorescence
is a circular head of several purple to lavender to yellow funnel-shaped flowers with lobed corollas each nearly a centimeter wide.
The fruit consists of a pair of nutlets surrounded by flesh somewhat like a berry.
for its plentiful colorful lavender to purple flowers and as a drought tolerant groundcover
, woody vine, and trailing plant for containers and in the ground.
In temperate climates there are flowers most the year, with yellow blooming and variegated leaved cultivars also available.
of garden and landscape plant
, and in some areas, such as parts of Australia
and Hawaii
, now a noxious weed and invasive species
. This plant is toxic to livestock.
Lantana
Lantana is a genus of about 150 species of perennial flowering plants in the verbena family, Verbenaceae. They are native to tropical regions of the Americas and Africa but exist as an introduced species in numerous areas, especially in the Australian-Pacific region. The genus includes both...
known by many common names, such as: trailing lantana, weeping lantana, creeping lantana, small lantana, purple lantana or trailing shrubverbena.
This lantana is native
Native plant
Native plant is a term to describe plants endemic or naturalized to a given area in geologic time.This includes plants that have developed, occur naturally, or existed for many years in an area...
to South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
.
Description
Lantana montevidensis is a small strongly scented flowering low shrubShrub
A shrub or bush is distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and shorter height, usually under 5–6 m tall. A large number of plants may become either shrubs or trees, depending on the growing conditions they experience...
with oval-shaped green leaves. With support it have a climbing 'vine
Vine
A vine in the narrowest sense is the grapevine , but more generally it can refer to any plant with a growth habit of trailing or scandent, that is to say climbing, stems or runners...
' form, when on edge a trailing form, and on the flat a groundcover form..
The inflorescence
Inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...
is a circular head of several purple to lavender to yellow funnel-shaped flowers with lobed corollas each nearly a centimeter wide.
The fruit consists of a pair of nutlets surrounded by flesh somewhat like a berry.
Cultivation
Lantana montevidensis is also cultivated as an ornamental plantOrnamental plant
Ornamental plants are plants that are grown for decorative purposes in gardens and landscape design projects, as house plants, for cut flowers and specimen display...
for its plentiful colorful lavender to purple flowers and as a drought tolerant groundcover
Groundcover
Groundcover refers to any plant that grows over an area of ground, used to provide protection from erosion and drought, and to improve its aesthetic appearance .- Ecosystem :...
, woody vine, and trailing plant for containers and in the ground.
In temperate climates there are flowers most the year, with yellow blooming and variegated leaved cultivars also available.
Invasive species
The plant is present nearly worldwide as an introduced speciesIntroduced species
An introduced species — or neozoon, alien, exotic, non-indigenous, or non-native species, or simply an introduction, is a species living outside its indigenous or native distributional range, and has arrived in an ecosystem or plant community by human activity, either deliberate or accidental...
of garden and landscape plant
Plant
Plants are living organisms belonging to the kingdom Plantae. Precise definitions of the kingdom vary, but as the term is used here, plants include familiar organisms such as trees, flowers, herbs, bushes, grasses, vines, ferns, mosses, and green algae. The group is also called green plants or...
, and in some areas, such as parts of Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
, now a noxious weed and invasive species
Invasive species
"Invasive species", or invasive exotics, is a nomenclature term and categorization phrase used for flora and fauna, and for specific restoration-preservation processes in native habitats, with several definitions....
. This plant is toxic to livestock.