The Mercury News

Lantanas lead fall garden fest celebratio­n

- By Norman Winter TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICE

If the plant world celebrated Oktoberfes­t, lantanas would be front and center leading the party. As far as The Garden Guy is concerned, it could be a fall lantana fest.

Now don’t get me wrong they were among the toughest, perseveran­t performers of the long hot summer. But come September and October, the relief from torrid temperatur­es brings the lantanas even more blooms, richer colors and lusher foliage.

The landscape floral show is mesmerizin­g; could these lantanas really be so beautiful? I say that while thinking of Luscious Grape. Not the fruit, but the purple flowered Luscious Grape lantana part of an awardwinni­ng series. Luscious Grape is different from the others in the series, in that it is a Lantana monteviden­sis selection, native to South America.

Luscious Grape is a multiaward winner in university trials. In baskets and containers, they are incredible. Seeing a rare Zebra longwing butterfly feeding on it in my yard in October was my gold medal moment.

It is not just Luscious Grape having a fall fest, but Luscious Marmalade with the fiery orange colors of a sugar maple and the new Luscious Golden Gate lighting up the fall landscape in dramatic fashion while bringing in a host of butterflie­s and bees.

The Luscious Marmalade has the largest orange flowers I have seen on a lantana and will always have a place in my garden. When Luscious Golden Gate debuted this year, I thought, did we need a gold lantana? Oh my, the compact bushy habit and continuous bloom will make you fall in love with golden flowered lantanas again and this will become the one on your list too.

Almost everyone will be waiting until spring 2021 to plant lantanas so you can have them for the long hot summer and then celebrate with a fall lantana fest. The Luscious series from Proven Winners features 11 colors including the Luscious Royale Red Zone debuting in 2021. If you are passionate about red then this is the one for you as it will add unparallel­ed excitement to your garden. It is certified sterile by the University of Florida so it will not exceed its boundaries in warmer regions.

Remember, sunlight is a key ingredient for the real blooming to occur. While they aren’t finicky on soil, I make soil improvemen­t a practice, always incorporat­ing leaves, compost and organic matter into planting beds. This helps with not only drainage but ideal root expansion with young plants. Plan on spacing your plants 2 to 3 feet apart depending on your variety selection.

Every September, garden centers load up with mums that we enjoy for a few weeks. I would tell the industry don’t be afraid to offer us some blooming lantanas to partner with these mums. More than likely they will bloom longer and feed remaining pollinator­s too.

Norman Winter, horticultu­rist, garden speaker and author of, “Tough- as- Nails Flowers for the South” and “Captivatin­g Combinatio­ns: Color and Style in the Garden.” Follow him on Facebook @Norman Wintertheg­ardenguy.

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