Home / Environment / Lantana: The Pretty Plant Devouring India's Forests
Lantana: The Pretty Plant Devouring India's Forests
19 Oct
Summary
- Lantana, once an ornamental plant, now threatens 44% of India's forests.
- The invasive shrub emits chemicals that inhibit native plant growth.
- Control efforts over two centuries have largely failed to stop its spread.
Originally introduced to India as an ornamental shrub shortly after 1800, lantana (Lantana camara) has transformed into a formidable forest invader. Native to Central and South America, this resilient plant now affects tropical rainforests, semi-arid regions, and mangroves across India, threatening 44% of its forest cover and spanning over 13 million hectares. Lantana's success lies in its aggressive growth, thriving in forests already stressed by events like fires or floods. It outcompetes native flora by releasing allelopathic chemicals that suppress other plants and by relying on birds for seed dispersal. Efforts to control lantana over two centuries in India, Australia, and South Africa have proven largely ineffective, with the plant projected to continue expanding under changing climate conditions.
A 2025 study in Frontiers in Forests and Global Change examined lantana's impact on tropical dry deciduous forests in Madhya Pradesh. Fieldwork conducted in 2017 and 2018 compared sites with high lantana cover to those without. The study found fewer native plant species in invaded areas. While carbon storage in the top soil layer was higher in lantana-affected areas, overall forest carbon was slightly lower. Researchers noted that a decline in young tree regeneration could disrupt long-term forest carbon storage. The study acknowledges that invaded sites might have been less biodiverse or carbon-rich initially. Long-term monitoring is recommended to fully understand the forest's evolving dynamics.
