Hi. New here, and not someone with a green thumb. But I have a spot in my yard where we can't get anything to grow. I have a pink and yellow lantana that we have actually been trying to kill off (it's crowding a young mesquite we want to succeed). For now the lantana has found a spot we'll let it be in if it will stay put. Anyway, I thought I could take the seeds from this super hardy perennial and plant them in my empty spot. It's starting to make seeds now, they are green. In the fall they turn black and look like blackberries. Is that when they are ready for planting? Do I plant the whole fruit? Should I plant it in the fall or save it for spring? How should I save it? Thanks for any advice. I live in very arid high desert mesa, and both locations are very sunny.

I have a large patch of C. 'Coral Beauty' covering a hill ending at a retaining wall. I have to trim it to keep the wall exposed. I wish I had planted it much further back from the wall than I did. Maybe 6'-8' back would have been better, rather than 3. I also have to trim it back (read: rip it out) periodically. to keep it from swallowing up a Jap Maple tree on the other side. In other words, a little goes a LONG way!!!! I would say it is 2-3' high. After a while the branches head upright to get some more light, so it can get a bit taller. The inner branches closer to the ground do not have much foliage, but that is not noticeable. I can find a picture if you would like. I get some winter kill here and there, but not always.

angelimperfect36: Lantanas are really easy to grow. Since you're in Florida lantanas will be especially easy to grow and you won't have to take the winter precautions that those of us further north have to take. In other words, lantanas for you should be a plant it and forget it type of shrub as long as you get the right cultivar. You'll want a seedless variety, and size is important for you since you have a longer growing season (pretty much all year). The only thing you need to determine is how much room you have for a lantana. In Kansas, some cultivars of lantanas can easily reach 7' wide by 4' tall. In Florida they can easily reach 10' wide. Do you have 10' of room for one lantana? A really nice compact 2' seedless variety is called Lantana camara 'Salsa'. Sometimes its sold as Lantana camara 'Carolina Salsa', because it was developed at nursery in North Carolina. Its approximately 2' in diameter and is seedless. It is probably the most beautiful salsa I have ever seen, both in form and color. It has a mounded form and is perfectly round (seriously). The leaves are flawless and the dark red and orange flowers sit just above the foliage. Below is a photo of the one I grew a couple of years ago. It' the little one on the right.

I'm seeing Confetti reaching 4' tall and 6-8' wide. But that's where the summers are long and hot. In OK, maybe? But I would reckon planting them 4' apart would be plenty. I have Miss Huff, grown from seed, and she was easily 5' tall and 4' wide last year. I took lots of cuttings and have already planted them out back. Orange and red blooms will cover the plants all summer. And the butterflies love it.