Klipp dagga

Leonotis nepetifolia, commonly known as klip dagga, lion's ear, or Christmas candlestick, is a robust annual to short-lived perennial herb in the family Lamiaceae native to tropical Africa and the Indian subcontinent, now widely naturalised throughout the tropics and subtropics, including the Caribbean and Latin America. The plant typically grows 1 to 3 metres tall with stout, square, sparsely hairy stems. The leaves are opposite, ovate to triangular-ovate, 4 to 10 centimetres long, with crenate-serrate margins, an acute apex, and a soft pubescent surface, giving off a faint mint-like aroma when crushed. The inflorescence consists of one to several globose, spiny whorls arranged at intervals along the upper stem, each whorl 5 to 10 centimetres across and densely packed with tubular, brilliant orange to scarlet two-lipped flowers 2 to 3 centimetres long, with the upper lip arching forward. After flowering, the persistent spine-tipped calyces form decorative dry seed heads.