Crocosmias with tall flowers: our selection for a majestic garden

Advantages of large Crocosmia varieties in the garden

The large varieties of Crocosmia, reaching between 70 cm and 1.1 m, provide a striking and elegant presence in the garden. They add height and structure to the flower borders, creating vertical focal points that draw the eye. The erect habit and sturdy stems allow structure to plantings, adding both height and volume without being invasive. When planted in groups, these Crocosmias create an impressive mass planting, especially when flowering.

Tall crocosmias with yellow flowers.

The yellow flowers of crocosmias provide unparalleled brightness to the garden. They capture the sun’s light, creating a visual focal point and adding a dynamic dimension to floral arrangements. The yellow evokes warmth, joy and energy, essential qualities for an inviting and vibrant garden. Moreover, crocosmias attract pollinators such as bees and butterflies, thereby promoting biodiversity.

Crocosmia ‘Sunglow’

Crocosmia ‘Sunglow’ is a variety reaching about 80 cm high by 50 cm wide and bears very airy, branched spikes, with nearly 40 orange buds, well spaced along the stem. The tubular flowers, golden yellow, almost orange, form dense, graceful clusters along the arched stems. Each flower, fairly large, has six petals recurved to the rear, giving a delicate and airy appearance. The stamens, tone-on-tone and prominent, add a touch of texture. The foliage, consisting of long lanceolate dark-green leaves, creates a contrast with the bright colour of the flowers.

Crocosmia ‘Paul’s Best Yellow’

‘Paul’s Best Yellow’ is a variety prized for its large flowers in a very warm yellow, mid-way to orange, which appear in abundance from July to September. With a flowering height of 1.10 m, this crocosmia offers a majestic presence without being invasive. The sturdy flowering stems bear graceful spikes, perfect for bouquets. The linear, dark-green foliage remains attractive throughout the season. Ideal in borders or mass plantings, ‘Paul’s Best Yellow’ brings an exotic and radiant note to the garden.

Crocosmia ‘Rowallane Yellow’

The Crocosmia ‘Rowallane Yellow’ reaches a height of 1 metre, producing flowers of a sulphur-yellow that deepen to golden yellow, from orange buds. The flowers of 5–6 cm in diameter, trumpet-shaped, have slender petals curved outward, giving a sense of lightness and are arranged in elegant, arching clusters along the stems. The foliage, in a dark olive-green tone, is dense and vertical. ‘Rowallane Yellow’ is particularly effective as a backdrop for mixed borders, where it pairs well with other colourful perennials. Its prolonged flowering and elegant habit make it a favourite with gardeners. This variety has received a Royal Horticultural Society Award of Garden Merit.

Crocosmia ‘Zambesi’

‘Zambesi’ is a superb variety that produces arching flowering stems in bronze-green, reaching up to 1.10 m in height, adorned with numerous orange buds. They open into large, beautiful flowers 5 cm in diameter, each petal of bright yellow-orange colour is highlighted by a midstripe of a deeper orange that extends in a circle around the throat of the flower. The foliage is dense, forming a lush clump that remains decorative even after flowering. Ideal at the back of borders, ‘Zambesi’ pairs well with grasses or purple-leaved shrubs, creating strong contrasts.

Clockwise: Crocosmia ‘Paul’s Best Yellow’, Rowallane Yellow, ‘Zambesi’ and ‘Sunglow’

Tall crocosmias with orange flowers

Large orange-flowered crocosmias evoke sunset and add a vibrant dimension to floral displays. Orange is an energising colour, symbolising enthusiasm, creativity and vitality. Orange crocosmias pair well with complementary tones such as purple, blue and dark green, creating striking contrasts.

Crocosmia ‘Babylon’

Crocosmia ‘Babylon’ is a variety around 70 cm tall when in bloom, with nearly 50 red buds on its flower spikes. The flowers are orange mango-colour that shades toward pale red, tinged with a mahogany-red eye in a golden-yellow throat. Each flower features six slender, slightly incurved petals, forming an elegant star. The prominent stamens are a lighter orange, adding depth to the flowering, itself enhanced by dark green foliage.

Crocosmia ‘Meteore’

‘Meteore’ is a variety prized for its flowers in a colour mix, giving a visual effect of an intense orange. With a height of 80 cm in bloom, this crocosmia presents a majestic presence without being invasive. The flowering stems bear horizontally branched spikes, counting nearly 50 red buds, which open into flowers about 4 cm in diameter, trumpet-shaped, each flower evenly spaced along the stem to create an elegant, airy effect. The flower tube is red, while its petals are yellow, painted with orange brush strokes for a strongly colourful result.

Crocosmia ‘Okavango’

Crocosmia ‘Okavango’ is distinguished mainly by flowers in a pink-orange, or peach, colour. It reaches 70–80 cm tall when in bloom.

Crocosmia ‘Star of the East’

‘Star of the East’ is an older cultivar that remains widely grown, awarded the Royal Horticultural Society’s Award of Garden Merit in England. Its flowers when fully opened, large, measure 7 cm in diameter and are a vivid orange with a burnt-orange reverse, on a paler throat dappled with dark red. The plant flowers for five to eight weeks from August. Each stem carries a ramified, more-or-less horizontal spike, where very many copper-orange buds crowd together to bloom from the bottom to the top of the stem.

Crocosmia masoniorum

The Crocosmia masoniorum is a very pretty botanical species reaching around 80 cm in height. Less water-demanding than others, it is also very floriferous. It offers very large flowers in a mandarine colour nuanced with pink and red, with a golden throat. Another feature: this crocosmia is possibly hardy down to -25°C in well-drained, dry soil. Its deep orange flowers measure about 5 cm in diameter. This variety has received an Award of Garden Merit from the Royal Horticultural Society.

Crocosmia ‘Okavango’, ‘Babylon’, masoniorum, ‘Star of the East’

Large red-flowered crocosmias

Red-flowered crocosmias add a dramatic, vibrant and energising touch to any garden. The tall varieties are particularly impressive. Their imposing size and flamboyant inflorescences make them major features in beds, borders and floral displays. They pair well with perennials with silvery or purple foliage, creating striking contrasts. In addition, their staggered flowering ensures a continuous presence of colour from early summer to autumn.

Crocosmia ‘Lucifer’

Let us begin with the best-known red-flowered crocosmia: the variety ‘Lucifer’. What has earned it its popularity is the intensity of its scarlet red colour. In addition, it forms robust clumps and flowers for a long period. It is derived from the Crocosmia masoniorum, featured in the previous chapter. ‘Lucifer’ slowly forms tall flowering tufts up to 1 m high, broad, creating colour masses that are hard to miss, magnificent with golden grasses. Its early flowering starts in June and lasts until August. Its qualities have earned it the Award of Garden Merit.

Crocosmia ‘Hellfire’

The crocosmia ‘Hellfire’ differs from ‘Lucifer’ in having larger and darker flowers. Its flowering stems, about 90 cm to 1 m tall, are almost black, and the flowers are a crimson red with no hint of orange. It is regarded as one of the best varieties in recent years. In this variety, the 6 cm diameter flowers are broadly flared, composed of six red petals fused into a tubular base. The leaves are dark green and sword-shaped.

Crocosmia ‘Mistral’

‘Mistral’ is an elegant tall variety, 80–90 cm tall when in flower. Its flowers, a uniform and intense red-orange colour, are slightly smaller than those of ‘Hellfire’, about 4 cm in diameter, but just as numerous. They open into long tubular trumpets from nearly 50 red-rose buds per spike. The airy flower spikes of ‘Mistral’ create a sense of lightness in the garden, gracefully swaying in the breeze.

Crocosmia ‘Saracen’

‘Saracen’ offers a very attractive colour pairing between bronze-green foliage and well-open flowers of 4 cm in diameter, a bright red-orange with a gold-yellow base, on a brown centre, adding an extra dimension to their appearance. The flowering stems, about 75 cm tall, are green-purple. The flowering of ‘Saracen’ lasts from July to September, bringing intense colour and a vertical structure to mixed plantings.

Crocosmia ‘Philippa Browne’

‘Philippa Browne’, named after a renowned British gardener, is a late-flowering variety, with large flowers that evolve from red-orange in July-August to vivid red-pink washed with orange in September. Its flowering stems of 80 cm carry numerous almost-red floral buds that open into flowers about 4–5 cm in diameter. The petals are slender and elegant, adding a delicate touch to the late-summer garden. This variety is ideal for prolonging the flowering season and adding a splash of colour until autumn.

Crocosmia ‘Mistral’, ‘Lucifer’ and ‘Hellfire’