Lantana hybrid Verbenaceae Kristin Yanker-Hansen, Danville Lantanas are familiar to most gardeners and are usually thought of as basic landscape ground covers. However, they have many merits: the deer don’t eat them, butterflies love their nectar, they need little water and are frost tolerant, they bloom a lot, and the leaves give off a fragrance you may (or may not) like. The two shown had purple and gold flowers, respectively, which are the hardiest (to 21°F) in Danville. They are from the subtropical Americas. Some varieties are better as ground cover and will vine into other plants while some can be trained as upright shrubs. Photo by Kristin Yanker-Hansen