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Leonotis leonurus
Also called Cape Hemp, Common Lion's Ear, Common Lionspaw, Leonotis, Lion's Tail, Narrow Leaved Leonotis, Narrow Leaved Minaret Flower
Lion's ear is a 2 to 3 metre evergreen shrub with orange tubular flowers in tiered whorls, grown for its bright blooms and as a bird and butterfly plant. It thrives in full sun and well-drained soil and tolerates drought once established.
Leonotis leonurus, also known as wild dagga and lion's ear, is a plant species in the mint family Lamiaceae. It is a broadleaf evergreen shrub, native to South Africa, where it is very common, with a wide altitudinal range from 5 m up to 1980 m. It is known to have medicinal and sedating properties. The main psychoactive component of Leonotis leonurus is hypothesized to be either leonurine or a mixture of labdane-type compounds; Leonotis leonurus has been confirmed to contain leonurine according to peer reviewed journal published phytochemical analysis. Like other plants in the mint family, it also contains marrubiin. The word "dagga" comes from Afrikaans, and derives in turn from the Khoikhoi "dachab". The word "dagga" has been extended to include the genus Cannabis in Afrikaans and South African English, so the use of "wild" serves to distinguish Leonotis from Cannabis.
Leonotis leonurus is cultivated as an ornamental plant for its copious orange blossom spikes, and is used as specimen shrub or a screen in gardens and parks. It is moderately drought tolerant, and a nectar source for birds and butterflies in landscape settings. It was introduced to Europe in the 1600s.
Lion's ear can be found introduced as an ornamental plant in other subtropical and Mediterranean climate regions beyond South Africa, such as California, Hawaii, and Australia where it has naturalised in some areas. In cooler climates it is used as an annual and winter conservatory plant.
Marrubiin has both antioxidant and cardioprotective properties and has shown to significantly improve myocardial function.
Docosatetraenoylethanolamide (DEA) is a cannabinoid that acts on the cannabinoid (CB1) receptor which has been found in the whole flower extract of the putative variety Leonotis leonurus var. albiflora.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Leonotis leonurus by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
