With their striking sword-like foliage and dazzling flowers, crocosmias bring a bright burst of high-summer colour to the garden
WORDS JOHN HOYLAND PHOTOGRAPHS JASON INGRAM
What A small genus of bulbous plants in the Iridaceae family, with brightly coloured flowers, usually red or orange, and upright, sword-shaped leaves. The eight species include C. aurea, C. pottsii, C. masoniorum and the semi-naturalised C. paniculata. They are commonly known as montbretia, falling stars and, in the USA, as coppertops.
Origins Southern and Eastern Africa.
Season Flowers between June and August, some lasting into September.
Size From 50cm to 1.8m tall.
Conditions Thrives in sunny situations in rich, well-drained soil.
Hardiness Some are hardy throughout the UK, but others will need winter protection. Most have an RHS hardiness rating of H4-H5, and are suitable for gardens in USDA zones 5a to 10b.
*Holds an Award of Garden Merit from the Royal Horticultural Society.
†Hardiness ratings given where available.
The fiery red and orange flowers of Crocosmia have been making a vibrant contribution to British gardens since they first started to appear in nurseries at the end of the 19th century. There are now hundreds of cultivars and hybrids, all descended from a handful of species. Crocosmia is a relatively small genus, with less than a dozen species native to southern and eastern Africa, where they are mainly found growing in open, moist grasslands and on forest margins.
Crocosmia aurea is the most widely known species and exhibits many of the qualities that make the genus attractive garden plants. The bright-green leaves appear in late spring, growing into spears over a metre tall, creating a bold, architectural effect. The arching flower stems are weighed down with star-shaped, orange flowers. Its cousin, Crocosmia pottsii, has similar foliage but with narrow, tubular flowers that often have a pinkish sheen.
These two species were used in France in the 1880s by the plant breeder Victor Lemoine to create a hybrid, Crocosmia x crocosmiiflora, the forerunner of many cultivars and hybrids. Lemoine referred to his plant as ‘montbretia’, in honour of the extravagantly named French botanist Antoine-François-Ernest Coquebert de Montbret.
When montbretia arrived in Britain, it was popular with both gardeners and nurserymen. Easy to propagate and quick to flower, it was an immediate suc
