Crocosmia Sunglow - Montbretia

Crocosmia x crocosmiiflora 'Sunglow', also known as Montbretia Sunglow, is a charming new variety, covered all summer with an airy, golden yellow to orange flowering of large, widely open flowers spaced well on the flower spike. Its growth is vigorous and compact. It is fairly hardy and easy to grow in moist soil and in the sun, this montbretia will be beautiful near the terrace, where you can admire its bright flower clusters up close in summer, even until autumn.

Crocosmia x crocosmiiflora is a herbaceous perennial plant with corms, originating from South Africa, from the Iridaceae family which resembles the gladiolus. 'Sunglow' is a recently introduced variety. In spring, it forms a flexible stem 80 cm (32in) tall and carries a very airy, branched spike, with nearly 40 orange buds, well spaced on the spike, opening up into opened tubular, golden yellow flowers, about 30 mm (1in) in diameter. They are composed of 3 inner petals and 3 outer petals. The sword-shaped leaves are pleated and spread out in a fan or fairly dense cluster, from the base of the plant. The storage organ is a corm, which is an underground pseudo-bulb that looks like a bulb but is formed by a swollen stem surrounded by scales.

Montbretias are symbols of summer. They are easy to grow, vigorous and undemanding planted in the sun, in groups of 10 corms, in fertile soil. Their bright colours, yellow, orange or red, create very cheerful splashes of colour in gardens. They are lovely combined with annuals or shrubs and are well suited to natural gardens mixed with perennials or grasses. When they thrive in open ground in sunny exposure and well-drained soil, they multiply and become more beautiful every year.