Crocosmia in landscape design. Graceful crocosmia or montbretia: features of cultivation, care, reproduction, wintering. Crocosmia planting in open ground

Crocosmia or montbretia are the same plant, which has two completely different names. There is also a third one - tritonia, as well as the popular name Japanese gladiolus. In Latin, the word "crocosmia" means "saffron scent." If you smell dried flowers, you can actually smell it. The plant received the name “Montbretia” when botanists decided to honor the memory of the famous French plant grower de Montbret.

It was born thanks to the efforts of the French breeder Lemoine. In 1880, he carried out the operation of crossing Crocosmia aureus and Potts. Thus, a hybrid for garden cultivation was obtained, containing the characteristics of two plants from Africa. It had pleasant star-funnel-shaped flowers, collected in red-orange inflorescences, the shape of which is a spikelet. Over time, the flower gains fame in European circles.

Crocosmia (Montbrecia) is an excellent choice for many flower beds, because this plant blooms for a very long time. On average, if weather and climatic conditions permit, flowering can begin in mid-summer and end with the onset of frost. Crocosmia is also grown for cutting, as it can stand in water for at least two weeks. It’s not for nothing that many bouquets are decorated with it - it deserves it.

Crocosmia leaves are narrow-xiphoid, light green in color. From under them emerge branched flower stalks on thin stalks, sometimes up to a meter in height. The main underground organ is the bulb, which is small in size and has several brown shells. Although this plant is exotic, under the right conditions it can be grown here.

Planting Crocosmia montbretia When to plant

Crocosmia is planted in open ground at the end of April., when the earth warms up well and even at night the temperature will not be lower than +10 ° C. Different varieties of crocosmia need to be placed in different flower beds, otherwise they will cross-pollinate.

Mature bulbs are planted in well-lit places where water does not stand for a long time, in early May. A sunny place is chosen because crocosmia is light-loving, and if it grows in the shade, it may not bloom.
Before planting, keep the bulb warm for several days, having previously separated the children.
It is recommended to soak the bulb in potassium permanganate immediately before planting to disinfect it, after which it can be placed in the ground 4-5 cm deep.
For crocosmia, the soil chosen is loose, with humus, and moist. The preparation of the flower bed is taken care of in advance, in the fall. If the soil is clogged, it is diluted with sand and fertilized.
When planting, make a distance of about 12 cm between the bulbs.
The ideal solution is to first germinate in small pots around March on the windowsill, and then plant them in the ground. This will ensure earlier flowering.

Caring for Crocosmia montbretia

The plant likes to be watered abundantly and infrequently.
After this, you need to weed the area to remove weeds and loosen it.
If necessary, install pegs for gartering flower stalks.
For faster growth of shoots, treat the ground under the plant with nitrogen fertilizer.
In the summer, organic fertilizers diluted tenfold, as well as mineral potassium supplements, will be useful.
At the end of flowering, all flower stalks are cut off to speed up the ripening of the bulbs and improve the chances of their further preservation.

Wintering of Crocosmia montbretia

If crocosmia is grown in cold regions, the bulbs are dug up in winter. This is done in early November so as not to harm the maturation process of the children. The bulbs are removed from the ground and dried in a barn. Then they organize their storage in a place where the temperature will always be in the region of 8-10 degrees Celsius.

If the plant is grown in warmer regions without severe frosts, it is not necessary to remove it from the ground for the winter. Recently, flower growers have been inclined to believe that bulbs should not be dug up, since they are definitely better stored in the ground. For even greater preservation, you can sprinkle leaves on top of them or cover them with film.

Excellent wintering of crocosmia is achieved due to dry soil. When winter ends, remove the insulation and remove the remains of old leaves. Adult bulbs are dug up once every three years for the purpose of propagation, because the children cannot be separated any other way. In the absence of thinning, flowering deteriorates sharply.

The video will tell you how to prepare Montbrecia for wintering:

Reproduction of Crocosmia montbretia

Crocosmia is bred using seeds and babies. The resulting large brownish-red seeds are placed in bowls and placed on bright windows in February-March. Then the seedlings sprout and are transplanted into pots when they become larger.

Crocosmia babies are planted at the end of April, when they are separated from the mother corms. Plants grown using seeds will bloom in 2-3 years, and young plants will bloom the next year. If you grow gladioli, it will not be difficult for you to determine the time of planting crocosmia, since it will be at the same time - in early May.

Pests and diseases of perennial crocosmia

Popular varieties of Crocosmia montbretia with descriptions and photos

1. Emily Mc Kenzie - one of the most beautiful decorative varieties. The symmetrical brownish-orange flowers have a large orange spot in the center. Flowering later, plant height - 60 cm.

2. Norwich Canary - petal color is canary yellow, plant height - 60 cm.

3. Star of the East - distinguished by beautiful large flowers, thanks to which it gained popularity. It blooms late, is tall (up to 1 m), has star-shaped apricot-orange flowers up to 10 cm in size. It does not tolerate winter well, so it requires shelter.

4. Lucifer is the most striking variant of this plant and one of the tallest (1.5 m in height). The peduncles are erect, bearing bright tomato-red flowers. Frost resistance is good, but shelter is recommended.

Crocosmia paniculata

A tall species (up to 1.5 m), which is characterized by early flowering. The flowers are orange and appear in June.

Crocosmia is a gorgeous decoration for your flower garden. It can be successfully combined with daylilies, cannas, dahlias, kniphofia, rudbeckia, salvia, yarrow, echinacea, sedum, chrysanthemums, helenium, and can also be grown independently.

Crocosmia in landscape design

The names crocosmia and montbretia sound exotic. The first is of Greek origin, related to the “crocus”; the dried flowers have a saffron scent. The second, today obsolete, is with the name of the famous botanist de Montbret. The rare name Tritonia, from the Greek for weathervane, comes from the plant's similar spreading form. The visual similarity determined the popular name - Japanese gladiolus, in comparison with which crocosmia looks more elegant. Bright, attractive, long-flowering plants are rarely found in gardens, although this is an excellent option for an expressive summer-autumn flower garden.

Description

Crocosmia (lat. Crocosmia) represents the iris family. This herbaceous corm plant is a hybrid of African origin, bred in the 19th century by the French breeder Lemoine.

Narrow light green sword-shaped leaves form lush tufts. Ground leaves are much shorter than the erect branched stem. Thin flower stalks branch from the ground and reach a height of up to 1.5 m. The first buds appear in June-July. It blooms with a cluster of graceful funnel-shaped flowers in white, pink, tan and orange-red.

Crocosmia - miniature gladiolus

The flowers are star-shaped, expanded, up to 5 cm in diameter. They are collected in a dense panicle with a horizontal bend. Flowering is abundant and long lasting. The arrows of the peduncles are erect or curved, repeating the shape of the elegant leaves.

The fruit is a multi-seeded capsule. The seeds are large, brown with a reddish tint. The corms are usually small, covered with several netted brown shells, reminiscent of gladioli corms. From one unit up to 4 peduncles grow.

Species and varieties of interest for floriculture

The genus includes about 55 species. The first hybrid was obtained by crossing Crocosmia Potts and golden, receiving the name Montbrezia vulgaris. It has a thin branched meter-long stem and medium-sized funnel-shaped flowers of red-yellow shades. It blooms in July, the peculiarity of the inflorescences is multi-colored; up to 10 flowers can be present in one inflorescence at the same time.

Numerous following cultivars are bred on the basis of this particular hybrid. Most crocosmias grow in the wild; mainly four varieties are used in culture:

K. golden- one of the largest flowers. It got its name for the bright yellow-orange color of its flowers. Tolerates some shade as it is a forest plant. Blooms only in autumn. Grown for cutting. It is thermophilic, does not overwinter, grows well in closed ground.

Graceful inflorescence of Montbrecia

K. Potsa– small-flowered, with smooth narrow leaves. Moisture-loving, light-loving, successfully adapts to unfavorable conditions. Natural forms are practically never found on plots and in gardens, but numerous hybrid forms are quite resilient and grow well.

K. massonorum– characterized by increased frost resistance, sword-shaped corrugated leaves, small flowers and large bulbs. It blooms in mid-summer, blooms profusely and for a long time. Reaches a height of 80 cm.

K. paniculata- a frost-resistant mountain variety, with corrugated leaves and medium-sized bright orange flowers that open in early summer.

Numerous varieties and hybrids are mainly cultivated, artificially bred on the basis of natural varieties. There are about 400 cultivars, the most common colors are yellow, orange, red, white and pink flowers are less common.

Photo gallery of species

Growing

Landing

The plant actively reproduces by self-sowing. Crocosmias need to be planted in different places on the site in order to avoid cross-pollination.

In the middle zone, corms are planted simultaneously with gladioli, in sunny areas that are not prone to stagnation of water. The plant is very light-loving; in the shade it may not even bloom, and the stems threaten to stretch out. Immediately before planting, the corms must be kept in a warm place for several days, then prepared for planting:

Disassemble the “nests”;
Separate the children;
Trim the roots, remnants of last year's stems with leaves;
Remove dried shells.

Montbrecia corms

Soak in a weak, slightly warm 0.1% solution of potassium permanganate and deepen it into the soil: the children are 3-5 cm, with a distance between the bulbs of up to 6 cm, for large bulbs the distance is doubled. The drug reliably disinfects planting material, accelerates germination and root formation.

Crocosmia loves moist, loose, humus soil. The place for planting crocosmia is prepared in the fall. Sand and mineral fertilizers are added to poorly drained soil.

Crocosmia planting material is sometimes on sale

Care

Montbrecia requires minimal care:

You need to water abundantly, but not often. After watering, be sure to loosen and weed the soil in a timely manner.
It is advisable to tie flower stalks to pegs.
Feed with nitrogen fertilizers, starting from the second leaf, which accelerates growth. In summer, it is recommended to switch to fertilizing with an aqueous solution of mullein (1:10) every 10 days, and add potassium-containing supplements with the appearance of buds.

Most species tolerate drought well. Curtains look decorative from late spring until the first frosts in late autumn.

Crocosmia grows into real colonies, for this reason flowering deteriorates over time. These colonies are divided every 3-5 years in the spring, before the start of the growing season.

At the end of flowering, it is better to cut off the flower stalks - the corms will ripen better, which means they will be better preserved in the ground or dug up.

Crocosmia on a rocky area

Wintering

For the winter, crocosmia is dug up in the northern regions. This is done no earlier than mid-October, before frost sets in; it is by this time that the children grow and mature. The bulbs are dried in well-ventilated areas. To prevent them from drying out, it is important to maintain the temperature within 10 °C. It is better to dig up the corms in a layer, including the soil, without disassembling them into bulbs.

Species crocosmias are winter-hardy, hybrid varieties, especially large-flowered varieties, are less resistant; they overwinter with shelter only in the southern regions of the country; in the rest it is better to dig them up. In frosty winters, you should mulch with compost and a layer of dry leaves, straw, bark, shavings, spruce branches; such shelter is especially important in winters with little snow.

In more southern regions, corms do not need to be dug up. They survive the winter safely in flower beds even at low temperatures. It is easier to ensure safety in the ground by sprinkling a 20 cm layer of dry leaves on top and covering it with film. In the spring, when the frosts stop, you need to hurry up and remove the foliage. When overwintering in the ground, it is better to cut the leaves at the root in the spring, in advance of new growth.

They overwinter well only in dry soil. In the lowlands it is better to dig up the corms.

Overwintered with shelter in the ground, crocosmia looks more powerful, blooms earlier, and blooms longer.

Crocosmia in mixborders

Reproduction

Montbrecia can be propagated by seeds, corms, and baby bulbs.

Species plants (and not only) are easily propagated by seeds. To grow crocosmia from seeds, they are selected fresh, pre-washed. Seeds are sown on a window or in a closed greenhouse in February-March; as they grow, the seedlings are moved to pots. They are transferred into the ground directly with a clod of earth in mid-May.

Crocosmia constantly produces many babies. Every year, one adult forms 5-6 small bulbs around itself, which bloom the next year. After their separation, the mother bulb continues its life cycle, and thus multiplies quickly. Children or small bulbs are the most effective method of propagation.

Seedlings bloom in the third year, children - already in the second.

Corms in the middle zone are planted in the garden in April - May, as soon as the soil warms up enough (up to 10-13 ° C).

To propagate, crocosmia must be dug up every three years. Without this procedure, too thick plantings of montbretia will bloom worse.

Crocosmia babies do not need to be separated during storage

Diseases, pests and ways to combat them

Crocosmia is quite resistant to diseases and pests. When the soil is over-moistened, gray rot may appear and, first of all, the bulbs are damaged. For prevention, you need to follow the watering regime.

Montbrecia is affected by diseases characteristic of gladioli:

Fusarium - manifested by progressive yellowing of leaves, which leads to the gradual death of leaves and drying of the entire plant. In infected plants, the stems and peduncles are bent, the size, shape, and color of the flowers change.
Herbaceousness or jaundice - yellowing of the tips of the leaves gradually spreads, the leaves become straw-like, and the plant dies. The disease is transmitted by cicadas. Heat treatment of weakly affected bulbs for half an hour at 45 C almost completely destroys the pathogen.

Crocosmia - elegant and tasteful

The main pests are:

Special mole cricket repellers are used; pest control consists of spraying with preparations against these pests in the required dosage specified by the manufacturer.

Crocosmia decorates fences, walls, gazebos

Use in landscape design

Crocosmias are grown in large or small groups in mixed flower beds against a background of lower plants. Placed in the first rows of mixborders.

They look great against the background of green lawns, in tropical, “dry” and gravel gardens.

Crocosmia is easy to naturalize in natural plantings. Greenery can cover large areas in short periods of time and can be used in the garden as a ground cover plant. In areas in full shade, the plant forms dense thickets.

Crocosmia in ornamental plantings

Looks good when cut, retains freshness for 2 weeks, bouquets of montbretia in composition with decorative cereals are distinguished by their beauty and grace.

In dry winter bouquets, the plant retains both the shape and color of the flowers well.

Harmonious partners for blooming crocosmia in mixed flower beds are perennials that bloom simultaneously with it: kniphofia, dahlias, yarrow, echinacea, rudbeckia, sedum, bush chrysanthemums, salvia, gaillardia. The combination with decorative cereals and daylilies looks great.

Bright, long-flowering crocosmias form multi-tiered multi-colored cascades not only on lawns, but also near bodies of water - near ponds and swimming pools. In personal plots they decorate walls and gazebos.

Crocosmia or montbretia are different names for the same plant. It is also called Japanese gladiolus. Crocosmia vulgaris is widespread in culture - a garden hybrid obtained by the French breeder Lemoine in 1880, as a result of crossing Crocosmia golden and Crocosmia Potts - South African corms of plants.

Its leaves are long and narrow, light green, numerous. Peduncles are flexible and tall, branched. Crocosmia's corm is small with several brown shells. The plant grows up to a meter tall in favorable conditions.

Crocosmia is charming with its graceful star-funnel-shaped flowers, collected in small paniculate inflorescences. It blooms in July, flowering continues into September if the autumn is warm and sunny. There are many flowers, their color depends on the variety and can be red, orange, golden yellow. There are flowers of fiery red with a yellow throat, orange-yellow and carmine-red with a yellow center.

Use in design. Crocosmia (Montbrecia) looks great in open flower beds. It is planted in large or small groups in all types of flower beds. It can also be planted in a group with other plants. Crocosmia harmonizes well with daylilies, cannas, salvia, echinacea, and rudbeckia.

Crocosmia is also suitable for cutting. Montbrecia stays in water for 12-14 days, gradually opening all the buds.

Accommodation. photophilous, blooms profusely and for a long time in sunny places. It grows well in light shade.

It is usually planted in April-May, large corms - to a depth of 6-8 cm, small ones - to a depth of 3 cm. The distance between the bulbs is most often 10-15 cm. Very early planting is not recommended due to too high humidity in the still cold soil.

Before planting, it is useful to keep the corms and children warm for a week. Immediately before planting, soak in a weak solution of potassium permanganate.

Soil and planting. The soil should be nutritious, loose and moist enough. Like most bulbous plants, it does not tolerate stagnant water. It will not grow in swampy lowlands. Crocosmia overwintering in the ground are dug up and divided every three years.

Watering and fertilizing. It usually does not need watering, but during dry periods it is necessary to water once a week for abundant flowering.

During the summer, periodically add mullein infusion (1:10) and complete mineral fertilizer. During the period of bud formation, potassium fertilizers are added.

Wintering. Crocosmia overwinters in the soil, but does not always withstand frost. Frost resistance of different varieties differs. A relatively warm winter, plenty of snow or shelter from dry leaves, shavings or spruce branches will allow it to overwinter successfully. Crocosmia that has overwintered in the ground is more powerful, blooms earlier and blooms longer.

Experienced flower growers advise digging up some plants and leaving others under cover for the winter. If wintering is successful, the crocosmia will bloom profusely and produce larger corms. If the ground freezes, you can resume planting from plants that overwintered in the cellar.

For storage in warm conditions, corms are dug up late, before frost. They grow precisely at the end of the season, after flowering. The dug up corms are dried, the stems and leaves are cut off at a height of 5 cm, sprinkled with dry peat, placed in boxes or paper bags and stored in the cellar. Storage temperature plus 5-7 degrees.

Reproduction. Crocosmias are easiest to propagate by children. Every year, 5-6 children are formed around one adult perennial corm, which bloom the next year. Babies are separated in the spring.

Crocosmia seeds also reproduce easily. When sown in a greenhouse in early spring, flowering occurs in the second year.

Crocosmia is a herbaceous bulbous plant from the Kasatiaceae family. It forms dense green thickets, over which bright upright or drooping inflorescences bloom. The name means “saffron scent”, which is what the dried flowers smell like. The plant is also known as Montbrecia, Tritonia or Japanese gladiolus. Crocosmia is native to certain regions of South Africa. Its slender thickets will perfectly complement the flower arrangement in the garden, and the cut inflorescences will last in a vase for more than two weeks.

Description of the plant

Crocosmia is a herbaceous perennial. The length of the plant can vary from 40 cm to 1 m. Its root system consists of corms that grow in large clusters. Each corm is covered with several layers of mesh membranes. The branched stem is surrounded by a basal fan-shaped rosette of xiphoid or linear foliage. The length of the bright green leaves is 40-60 cm, they are bent along the central vein or have a corrugated surface.

Dense paniculate inflorescences bloom in the branches of a thin, flexible stem. They appear in July and persist until the end of September. Each flower has a symmetrical five-pointed star shape. The diameter of the open corolla is 3-5 cm. The petals are painted red, orange or yellow. A bunch of long yellow stamens peek out from the center. The buds on the peduncle bloom in turn, from the base to the edge.

In the southern regions, the seeds on crocosmia have time to ripen. They are located in small round seed pods and are orange in color.

Types and varieties of crocosmia

There are more than 50 species and several dozen hybrid varieties in the genus Crocosmia.

The plant is 50-80 cm high at the base and has a fan-shaped rosette of bright green sword-shaped leaves. Flowering begins in July, when clusters of yellow-orange buds bloom on the stem. Distributed in South Africa, brought to Europe in the middle of the 19th century.

The plant has good frost resistance. The bush consists of a rosette of ribbed bright green leaves and a long, drooping peduncle. It is densely packed with small yellow-orange flowers.

Grows in shaded swampy areas of Africa. The foliage is narrower and smoother. The inflorescences contain many small orange flowers.

As a result of the work of breeders, the following highly decorative varieties of Montbrecia were born:

Reproduction methods

Crocosmia is propagated by seed and vegetative methods. Seeds are pre-sown on seedlings in order to obtain a more mature plant by spring. In February, a mixture of peat, turf soil, sand and leaf humus is placed in flat boxes. The seeds should be soaked in warm water for a day, which should be changed 4 times. Sow them to a depth of 3-5 mm. The container is covered with glass and placed in a warm, bright room. After 1-2 weeks, the first shoots appear. Young plants continue to be grown at home until the beginning of May. Strong seedlings are transplanted into open ground when the risk of spring frosts disappears.

A more convenient method of propagation is dividing the corms. Every year up to six children are formed on the rhizome. Moreover, the mother bulb remains viable. In the fall, when the foliage is completely dry, the tubers are dug up. In central Russia they are stored until spring in a warm place where frost does not penetrate. When transplanting, you can divide a large clump into several parts, but you should not plant the corms one by one.

Wintering conditions

Bulbs can winter safely in the ground if the air temperature in winter does not drop below -15°C. In more severe winters, the soil is covered with spruce branches, dry leaves and film. In regions where frosts reach -30°C, corms are dug up for the winter. They are removed from the ground and stored in cardboard boxes at a temperature of no more than +10°C.

Excess moisture in the soil poses a greater threat to roots. In low-lying areas, to prevent plants from getting wet, it is also recommended to dig them up.

Even if crocosmia overwinters in open ground, every 3-4 years the bushes need to be dug up and divided. Without this procedure, the plants will begin to become smaller and bloom worse.

Features of care

Crocosmia is unpretentious, caring for it in the open ground will not be difficult. In mid-April, when the soil temperature reaches +6...+10°C, the corms are planted in a sunny place. It should be well protected from drafts. Bulbs should be planted to a depth of 7-10 cm, children - 3-5 cm. There should be a distance of 10-12 cm between plants. Before planting, the bulbs are pickled in special preparations or a solution of potassium permanganate for 1-3 hours.

In order for the plants to grow and bloom profusely, it is necessary to regularly water the crocosmia. In dry soil, the plant will lose its decorative effect. If the summer turns out to be rainy, watering is reduced or stopped altogether. To prevent water from stagnating in the soil and air to penetrate to the roots, you need to periodically loosen the soil.

From early spring, crocosmia needs regular soil fertilization. In April-June, three times a month it is fertilized with mullein and nitrogenous fertilizers (aqueous solution 1:10). It is recommended to alternate organic matter with mineral compounds. With the appearance of the first buds, nitrogen fertilizers are eliminated. In order for the bulbs to ripen well before frost, wilted flowers must be cut off.

Possible difficulties

Crocosmia can suffer from fungal diseases when grown in flooded soils. Replanting and treating with a fungicide will help save you from rot. Flowers may also suffer from fusarium. The bulbs become dark, soft and streaky. It is very difficult to cure them; it is better to isolate and destroy the affected plants.

With jaundice (grassiness), the bulbs turn yellow and become very dense. They produce many shoots with thin yellow leaves. At the early stage of the disease, heating the bulb to a temperature of +45°C helps to completely recover.

Among the pests that destroy crocosmia are mole crickets and thrips. Treating the soil and planting material saves you from them.

Use in design

Thickets of crocosmia look very decorative. They can be planted in small or large groups in flower beds, in the middle of the lawn or along borders. In a flower garden, the plant looks impressive next to rudbeckias, echinacea, salvia and representatives of the Liliaceae family.

The long, erect flower stalks of crocosmia look good when cut. They will stay in the vase for more than two weeks and will gradually open more and more buds.