Flame throwers
WITH their sword-shaped foliage and elegant branching heads of flowers in sunshine-rich colours, crocosmias, most of which are found in South Africa, make wonderful garden plants. Surprisingly, given that there are only seven species in the gene pool, there are plenty to choose from. They come in varying heights and their foliage can differ from neatly pleated bright green to soft brown or grey. They begin to flower in July, with the popular bright-red ‘Lucifer’ being one of the earliest. The giant-flowered honeyed orange ‘Star of the East’ (1910) and ‘Castle Ward Late’ (pre-1985) will often linger into
