Lawn Care
Published
August 2, 2022
Author
Searles Gardening Team
What does Lantana look like and how to control it?
Viewed as one of Australia’s worst environmental weeds, lantana has now spread far and wide throughout most coastal regions of states and territories. It typically invades disturbed land and river margins, while continually extending its range in response to rainfall. It remains a constant threat to agriculture pastoral production, forestry and biodiversity of conservation areas and may be toxic to stock.
An easily recognised species that forms impenetrable thickets mainly in native bushland and grazing land. The flowers are in shades of pink, yellow and red and are formed at the end of branches. The entire plant (including flowers) have distinctive strong aroma when touched. The foliage is coarse to the touch with sometimes small spines on the underside of the leaves.
Control on large properties and bushland is a long and lengthy one with strong and continual use of mechanical, chemical and fire being the most effective options being employed, followed by intense revegetation programs around the country. For home gardens applications, an effective treatment is to spray with Searles Tree & Blackberry Killer.
Biological methods such as Lantana Bug (Aconophora compressa) are an introduced insect species that were intended in to help control this weed within Queensland, but with only limited success and became a insect pest in itself.
