Family: Iridaceae
Common name: Montbretia
Origin: South Africa
Flower color: orange, red, yellow
Flowering period: August – September
Average plant height: 24 – 30 inches
Planting depth to base of bulbs: 2 inches
Spacing between bulbs: 4 inches
Type of bulb: corm
Light requirements: full sun (morning sun)
Landscape uses: border, beds, perennial garden
Crocosmia produces several flowers per spike. There are small-flower and large-flowered varieties. The leaves are sword-shaped. Crocosmia is better known as Montbretia. If planted in the fall, mulching will be necessary for at least the first year. After a year, they will be fairly winter hardy.
Crocosmias are very effective border plants, both for the perennial plant border as well as a border planted in annuals and other summer-flowering bulbous, cormous and tuberous plants. Another place to put them is next to a somewhat somber conifer border. The colors provided by a large clump of crocosmias will definitely enliven this area of the garden. Crocosmias also serve very well as cut flowers and are raised for this purpose by professional growers.
Combining with other plants
The yellow, orange and red colors of Crocosmias are at their loveliest next to blue-flowering plants such as Agapanthus, Aconitum (Monkshood), Salvia nemorosa, Aster amellus, Aster novi-belgii, Erigeron ’Dunkelste Aller’, Echinops ritro (Globe thistle), and Campanula lactiflora.
Principal varieties
Crocosmia x crocosmiiflora (Montbretia) are divided into:
Small-flowered varieties such as:
- ‘Meteor’ – yellow tinged with orange.
- ‘Red King’ – red with orange-yellow center.
Large-flowered varieties such as:
- ‘Emily McKenzie’ – orange.
- Crocosmia masoniorum ‘Lucifer’ – tomato red.