Step 1: Understanding the Concept:
A rock garden is a specialized landscape feature constructed using rocks, stones, and soil to mimic rugged alpine or mountainous terrain.
Plants suitable for rock gardens must be low-growing, prostrate, trailing, or dwarf shrubs that can grow in rocky crevices and cascade gracefully over stone surfaces.
Step 2: Detailed Explanation:
Let us evaluate each plant listed for its suitability in rock gardens:
- (A) Lantana sellowiana (syn. Lantana montevidensis - Weeping Lantana): Highly suitable.
This is a low-growing, prostrate, trailing shrub with trailing branches that cascade beautifully over rocks, producing abundant purple flowers.
- (C) Juniperus horizontalis (Creeping Juniper): Highly suitable.
This is a classic, hardy, prostrate coniferous evergreen shrub that hugs the ground and spreads horizontally, making it an ideal choice for rockeries and slope stabilization.
- (B) Ixora armeniaca & (D) Duranta plumeri (syn. Duranta erecta): Unsuitable.
These are upright, medium-to-large, woody shrubs with erect growth habits.
They are used for hedges, screens, or specimen plants, but are not prostrate or trailing shrubs suited for planting directly inside rock gardens.
Therefore, the suitable shrubs are (A) and (C) only.
This corresponds to Option (B).
Step 3: Final Answer:
The prostrate or trailing shrubs suitable for rock gardens are (A) and (C) only.