Crocosmia Harlequin - Montbretia

The Crocosmia ‘Harlequin’ is a bicolour montbretia prized for its light flower spikes laden with golden-yellow flowers, washed with orange and red on the reverse of the petals. This graphic bulbous plant forms a beautiful, colourful clump that enlivens borders in the heart of summer. Compact and floriferous, this crocosmia provides excellent cut flowers for the home. As it returns each year, this variety brings colour and movement to the garden or large containers without requiring much care.

The group Crocosmia × crocosmiiflora brings together many corm hybrids from the Iridaceae family native to the prairies of southern Africa. The Crocosmia ‘Harlequin’ is a "bulbous" perennial with deciduous growth: the aerial part disappears in winter, the corms or bulbs remain dormant in the soil and re-emerge the following spring. The plant adopts a tightly clumping habit, composed of narrow, lanceolate, sword-shaped leaves, of medium to dark green, measuring 40 to 60 cm long. The flowering stems, tinged with purple or reddish-brown, are well ramified, sturdy without being stiff, and bear arched inflorescences reminiscent of mini freesias. Each spike is adorned with numerous starry, tubular flowers, 3 to 4 cm in diameter, with a luminous golden-yellow centre and outer petals alternating shades of orange and scarlet red, sometimes highlighted with burgundy reflections. The flowering occurs from July to September, even into October depending on the climate, on stems 60 to 80 cm tall. This crocosmia is generally announced as fully hardy in temperate climates, at least down to –10 °C in well-drained soil, especially with a protective mulch in cold climates.
‘Harlequin’ was selected by the British grower Philippa Browne (Overseas Farm Nursery, Herefordshire) and was introduced to the horticultural trade in the early 2010s. Like all crocosmias, its corms multiply in the form of small, overlapping chains and naturalise over time.

In the garden, the Crocosmia ‘Harlequin’ is perfect for creating a border with warm colours. Plant it in small, repeated clumps among perennials or annuals. You can pair it with the coppery flowering of Helenium ‘Moerheim Beauty’, the flexible stems of Pennisetum macrourum and the pink spikes of Veronicastrum virginicum ‘Red Arrows’. In a more sophisticated scene, combine it with the large cream umbels of Ammi visnaga ‘Green Mist White’ and the dark heads of Dahlia ‘Sam Hopkins’. In a vase, its arched stems combine with the orange-red spikes of Crocosmia ‘Hellfire’ or the long spires of a Persicaria amplexicaulis ‘Orange Field’.

The name Crocosmia comes from the Greek krokos (saffron) and osme (scent), because the dried flowers release a saffron scent when immersed in hot water. They were once used to flavour infusions.