Crocosmia is a genus in the Iridaceae family from tropical and eastern South Africa. It is well known because of its frequently cultivated hybrid between Crocosmia pottsii and Crocosmia aurea, Crocosmia × crosmiiflora. Plants have erect sword shaped leaved and spikes of tubular or funnel shaped orange to red flowers. More pictures can be seen on this Crocosmia website
Crocosmia × crocosmiiflora often called Montbretia, has sword shaped leaves and orange-crimson flowers. It can be very invasive where happy as it spreads by stolons which create new corms and even when new corms are pulled out, the old corms left behind in the soil are often still viable. Photo by Bob Rutemoeller.
Crocosmia × crocosmiiflora 'Emily McKenzie' here photographed by and in the garden of Jim McKenney on August 7, 2005
Crocosmia 'Lucifer' is a very popular cultivar that is very tall with large red flowers. Photo by Bob Rutemoeller.
Crocosmia masoniorum is a species from the Eastern Cape of south Africa with pleated leaves and orange-red flowers. It needs regular watering while in growth from spring until summer flowering. The photos below could be of a named cultivar and were taken in the Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens summer 2004 by Bob Rutemoeller. These plants have made a come back after the deer fence was added and were thought lost in the past.
Crocosmia pearsei Oberm. is native to the Drakensberg Mountains in South Africa. Plants grow in basalt outcrops and cliffs, mostly on cooler slopes at high elevations where they would have cold winters, cool summers, and well drained soil. Flowers are trumpet shaped and deep orange with a spike arching outward and mostly horizontal. This species does not respond well to cultivation. Photos taken by Cameron McMaster at Sentinel Peak in KwaZulu-Natal.
