Crocosmia Zambesi - Montbretia

The Crocosmia x crocosmiiflora 'Zambesi' is a variety of Montbretia that is vigorous and striking and will significantly impact a summer border. Its tall flower spikes bear large, beautiful flowers that resemble miniature daylilies in their appearance and yellow-orange colour with orange stripes. This tall plant, perennial by its bulb, is generous but not hardy in damp winter soils. However, it can be grown quickly as an annual in the sun in cool but well-drained soil during the growing season. Its flowers also look lovely in a vase.

The Crocosmia (x) crocosmiiflora is a herbaceous perennial plant with corms originating from South Africa and belonging to the Iridaceae family. It was obtained in France by Victor Lemoine around 1880. It shows many similarities with the gladiolus. Our garden montbretias need a lot of humidity throughout their growth and flowering period, as they come from regions where summer rains are abundant. They also like soils rich in compost.

The 'Zambesi' variety, registered in 2008, forms in spring a flexible basal clump of leaves, about 50-60 cm (20-24in) in height, and produces from July to September a curved, bronze-green flower stem that is 1 m (3ft) to 1.10 m (4ft) tall, carrying a horizontal, ramified spike adorned with numerous orange flower buds. They open into flowers about 5 cm (2in) in diameter, comprising six tepals: 3 inner and three outer petals. The tepals are traversed by a deep orange central line extending in a circle around the flower's base. Their slightly translucent texture allows the sun to enhance these hot colours. The dark green leaves are sword-shaped, with a plicate and strongly veined surface, and fan out or form a dense cluster from the base of the plant. The storage organ of Crocosmia is a corm, which is an underground pseudo-bulb that resembles a bulb but is formed by a swollen stem surrounded by scales. The above-ground vegetation disappears in winter, while the corm goes dormant, preferably in dry soil.

Half-bulb half-shrub Montbretias are symbols of summer. Easy to grow, vigorous, and not demanding, they can be planted in the sun in fertile and excellent soil. Their bright colours, yellow, orange, or red, create cheerful spots of colour in gardens. They look splendid when combined with annuals or shrubs. They are well suited for natural gardens, mixed with perennials (Buenos Aires Verbena, Hastate Verbena) or grasses (Stipa tenuifolia, Panicum virgatum Kulsenmoor...). When they thrive in open ground, in sunny exposure and well-drained soil, they multiply over the years and become more beautiful yearly. They are also excellent flowers for your bouquets.