Leonotis leonurus aka Lion's Ear or Lion's Tail
Aren’t these fuzzy orange tubular blossoms delightful? This beautiful and fast growing bush blooms for almost six months straight here in Zone 9b beginning in the late spring and all the way to December. It is usually still blooming during the holidays! While in bloom, the bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds love it! The little Rufous hummingbirds defend it rigorously from the bigger Anna’s hummingbirds.
Not only to the gophers leave it alone, best of all, the deer don’t eat it either! We have a lot of deer here, the trails are worn deep where they come through every evening, so we try to grow flowers they are not interested in!
Leonotis leonurus originated in South Africa and is a member of the same family as the mints. So it can spread quickly in good conditions. It is an evergreen perennial which can get up to six feet tall or more and about six feet wide. But as it grows quickly, it can also be trimmed and shaped easily.
It is also very drought tolerant. If it does wilt, it recovers quickly with little harm to the flowers. It does best in good soil out in the full sun, but will also bloom in partial sun. But there will not be as many flowers.
They are hardy down to 20 degrees and if they do freeze, they will respond with new growth in the spring. If you live where you know it is going to freeze, you can ensure their survival with a deep layer of winter mulch.
These are young plants and should be kept in their tubes until you are certain they are growing and even better, until you can see roots coming out the bottom. A small jar will keep them upright until then. Do not pull them out of their tubes, gently tap on the edge of a table or push a utensil up through the bottom after thoroughly soaking them. If necessary, slide a slim tool down inside to help gently slide it out. Don’t worry if some damage is done, they grow fast and will recover! And although Leonotis leonurus are drought tolerant, these should not be allowed to get dry. They don’t want to be sopping wet and should never sit in water, but they should not get dry until they are large well established bushes. If they do get so dry they wilt, then like any potted plant that has wilted, they should be submerged in water until the bubbles stop and then allowed to drain completely. As soil that dry actually repels water instead of absorbing it and water will just run down the insides of the containers or pots instead of being absorbed.
Plant them deep, all the way up to their foliage. New shoots will come up from below the surface from every node on the trunk and new roots will grow along the trunk as well.
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