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In my list of complicated plants, the Lantana Camara stands out as a highly misunderstood member of the group. Some call it the Tickberry, kanding kanding flower or Bandana Cherry, a herbaceous perennial flowering plant that gives off a peculiar aroma when touched or disturbed.
I personally feel the odour it produces is too strong and overpowering for my liking a pungent, earthy and grassy scent. We love things differently, so maybe you may like it, but it's strong enough to be perceived from a distance.

Description

It has this green and beautifully wrinkled heart-shaped leaves with jagged edges and a fine tip.
It has a cluster of flowers that changes colour as they mature, depending on the species of Lantana. This is really why a single cluster of lantana flowers will have different colours from the centre out to its edge.

Once the flowers die off, we are left with a bunch of berry-like fruits that start green and become blueish-purple when fully ripe. Creating a feast for the birds who plug the fruits, eat and transport the seeds to other places where they poop it out resulting in its aggressive growing reputation.

Another reason why this plant has such an aggressive growth pattern that makes it invasive is the fact that they are toxic to animals. No body wants to feed on them, grazing animals like goats and cattle tend to avoid this plant due to its toxicity, and that should include you.
Lantana is definitely not the plant you will want to experiment with.

Uses of Lantana

Because of its beautiful flowers, Lantana is often cultivated for its ornamental value, and a few people love the aroma it gives off.
There is a third group that cultivates Lantana and processes it into some forms of traditional medicine and herbal tea.
Don't be surprised if you see or hear that some people or cultures have used the Lantana plant in one way or another. These people know how to identify the right species and how to neutralise its toxicity for safe consumption.
This plant also had the ability to weed off plants around it by releasing chemicals that inhibit the growth of other plants around it. These allelopathic properties also make it invasive as it suppresses neighbouring vegetation.

Caution ⚠️

Using lens and other software to identify a plant or plant species is not 100% foolproof. Factors like poor capturing device quality, image quality, lack of clarity and uncaptured plant features can lead to wrong results.
Some plants mimic a safe or poisonous twin or relative such that very little is used to tell them apart.

Do you know this plant? Were you introduced to it by this post?

I wish you could give a local name for it, and ig you know of any uses of the Lantana plant.

I am inviting you and the following to have your say in the comment section below.

@alexanderpeace, @ninapenda, @okere-blessing and @rubee2as1

Media Credit

Composer	@manuelhooks
Captured with	Galaxy-A15
Captured Date	Tuesday. 19th August
Photographer	@manuelhooks
Posting Date	Friday. 22 August
	(@) 2025