Crocosmia 'Emily McKenzie' Plants - Outdoor GROW TROPICALS
Montbretia 'Emily McKenzie'

Crocosmia 'Emily McKenzie'

£7.99
Hardy in the UKSun-lovingRHS award winnerLoved by pollinators
Pot size
11cm / 0.75L £7.99

FREE tracked delivery on orders over £60

Complete the set up
Description

Crocosmia 'Emily McKenzie', a much-loved montbretia, is prized for its large, richly coloured flowers that arrive later than most, extending the crocosmia season into early autumn. The broad, downward-facing blooms are a warm burnt-orange, each one marked with a striking deep mahogany-red throat, carried on gracefully arching stems above fans of broad, mid-green leaves. A genuine RHS Award of Garden Merit plant, it is valued for its bold colouring and dependable garden performance.

Rated RHS H4, 'Emily McKenzie' is hardy in most of the UK. The corms rest below ground through winter and return each spring, so the clump vanishes over the coldest months before flowering afresh. Being one of the last crocosmias to bloom, it enjoys a warm, sheltered position, and a mulch over the crowns in autumn helps in colder or wetter gardens. Our hardy exotics guide explains what to expect through the seasons.

Water through the first summer while the corms establish, after which the clumps are dependable and fairly drought-tolerant. Flowering so late in the year, it offers valuable nectar for butterflies and hoverflies in any pollinator planting. Set it in the middle of exotic borders, in warm coastal and seaside schemes, or in a sunny container among your plants for pots. It looks superb alongside the taller Crocosmia masoniorum and the rest of our hardy exotics.

Every Crocosmia we supply is nursery-grown and carefully selected for a strong, healthy corm and root system, packed with care to arrive in top condition and ready to establish quickly.

Live Arrival Guarantee

All plants are covered by our 7-day live arrival guarantee. We pack every order in protective, sustainable packaging designed to keep your plants safe in transit, and every plant is checked before it ships. On the rare occasion something is not right on arrival, we will make it good, provided the plant is still in its original nursery pot.

Find out more

What to Expect

Seasonal by nature: what to expect

  • Grown outdoors, the way nature intended. Weather-tested and hardened in real UK conditions, so they thrive in your garden. A few marks on the older leaves are normal, the sign of a tough, real plant rather than a flaw.
  • It follows the seasons. Depending on when you order, your plant may arrive cut back, dormant or leafless. That's healthy: dormancy is the ideal time to plant.
  • Posted, not posed. Big leafy plants like bananas and gingers may be trimmed or gently folded to travel safely. It does the plant no harm, and it powers away again in spring.

Not sure what to expect from yours? Dormant, cut-back or weather-marked plants are all perfectly healthy and normal. Read what to expect through the seasons

Delivery & returns

Order by 1pm Monday to Friday for same day dispatch. Every plant travels in protective, plant-safe packaging with tracked delivery.

Changed your mind? See our Return Policy.

Best quality plants guaranteed
7 day live arrival guarantee
Delivered to your door with care
Earn 39 points with this plant · 5 points per £1 Join free

How to care for Montbretia 'Emily McKenzie'

Plant me in full sun and I will stand a UK winter outdoors.

In their words

What our customers say

Arrived just like the photos - maybe even fuller. Healthy, well-acclimated, and straight into my collection with no issues.

Emily P.

Flawless leaves, stunning variegation, and clearly cared for by experts. It’s already a talking point in my home office.

James R.

Hard to find rare plants that are pet-safe. Ours arrived in perfect condition and looks amazing without any worry.

Sophie L.
Get to know me

About Montbretia 'Emily McKenzie'

Crocosmia 'Emily McKenzie' needs full sun or partial shade and moist but well-drained soil. It is hardy to around −10°C, standing an average UK winter outdoors.

Good for

Coastal & Exposed Exotic Borders Pots & Containers Wildlife & Pollinators

Hardiness

TenderVery hardy

RHS H4 · Hardy Exotic · down to around −10°C

hardy in most of the UK (RHS H4), with an autumn mulch worth adding in cold or wet gardens.

Position

Full sunPartial shadeEast-facingSouth-facingWest-facingExposedSheltered

full sun or dappled partial shade, ideally warm and sheltered to ripen the late flowers.

Soil

ChalkClayLoamSandMoist but well-drainedAcid pHAlkaline pHNeutral pH

any fertile, free-draining soil from chalk to clay, across the full pH range, with reliable winter drainage.

Watering

Water through the first summer while the corms root in, keeping the soil moist but never waterlogged. Established clumps are fairly drought-tolerant. Divide congested clumps in spring every few years to maintain strong flowering. Read moreShow less

Water through the first summer while the corms root in, keeping the soil moist but never waterlogged. Established clumps are fairly drought-tolerant. Divide congested clumps in spring every few years to maintain strong flowering.

Mature size

Height0.6-0.75 m
Spread0.3-0.5 m

Reaches full size in 2-5 years

Growth habit

Clump-forming

Flowering

Aug-Sep · Orange

Seasonal colour

Foliage

Deciduous

Pruning

Cut faded flower stems, leave the foliage to die back naturally, then tidy in late winter. Lift and divide congested clumps in spring.

Toxicity

Crocosmia are generally regarded as non-toxic and there are no serious toxicity reports for people, cats or dogs. As with many garden plants, eating the corms or foliage may cause mild stomach upset, so it is sensible to discourage pets and children from doing so.

Native range

Garden origin

Family

Iridaceae

Also known as

Crocosmia 'Emily McKenzie'

Genus

Crocosmia →
Good to know

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Crocosmia 'Emily McKenzie' hardy in the UK?

Yes. 'Emily McKenzie' is rated RHS H4 and hardy in most of the UK. The corms rest dormant underground through winter and reshoot in spring. As a late flowerer it likes a warm, sheltered spot, and a mulch over the crowns in autumn helps in cold or wet gardens, as covered in our hardy exotics guide.

How tall does Crocosmia 'Emily McKenzie' grow?

It reaches around 0.6 to 0.75m tall and up to 0.5m across, a tidy size that sits well in the middle of an exotic border or in a container.

When does Crocosmia 'Emily McKenzie' flower?

It is one of the last crocosmias to bloom, flowering from late summer into early autumn, roughly August and September. This makes it invaluable for extending colour when many other border plants are going over.

What colour are Crocosmia 'Emily McKenzie' flowers?

The flowers are large and broad, facing downwards in a warm burnt-orange, each one boldly marked with a deep mahogany-red throat. That two-tone colouring, on arching stems, is what makes this variety so distinctive.

Can I grow Crocosmia 'Emily McKenzie' in a pot?

Yes. It grows well in a large, free-draining container in a warm, sunny spot, with regular watering and feeding through summer. Browse more of our plants for pots and containers.

Is Crocosmia 'Emily McKenzie' good for pollinators?

Yes. Flowering so late in the season, its nectar-rich blooms are a welcome food source for butterflies and long-tongued hoverflies, making it a great pick for a wildlife and pollinator garden.

Does my plant come with a pot?
Your plant will arrive in its nursery grow pot — the plastic pot it's been growing in. We don't include a decorative pot as standard, and there's a good reason for that: it means you get to choose one that fits your space and style, rather than being stuck with something that doesn't suit your home.

It also means you're not paying extra for a pot you might not want. The nursery pot is perfectly fine to keep your plant in for a while, just pop it inside a decorative cover pot or cache pot and you're good to go. When you're ready to repot (usually after a growing season or when roots start poking out the bottom), you can move it into something more permanent with fresh soil.

If you're not sure what size cover pot to go for, check the pot selector tool listed above, you'll want a decorative pot that's a centimetre or two wider than that to give it a comfortable fit.
How big will my plant be when it arrives?
Every plant on our site includes the pot size (e.g. 12cm) and, where possible, an approximate height. That's the most reliable way to set your expectations, photos can sometimes make a plant look larger or smaller than it really is.

If you're thinking "that sounds quite small for the price," here's something worth knowing: younger, smaller plants almost always adapt better to your home than larger ones. They adjust faster to your light and humidity, put out new growth more quickly, and tend to establish stronger root systems long-term. A plant that grows into your space will usually outperform one that was already big when it arrived.

That said, every plant is an individual. The one you receive may vary slightly in height, shape, or fullness compared to the photo, that's the nature of living things, not a quality issue. We select healthy, well-established specimens, and if you ever feel your plant doesn't match what you were expecting, just get in touch and we'll take a look.
What makes your plants different from the supermarket or garden centre?
There's a big difference between a plant that's been sitting under on a retail shelf and one that's been looked after and cared for by people who specialise in exactly this.

Our plants are grown in house or sourced from specialist nurseries, many of them varieties you simply won't find at your local garden centre or supermarket. Before anything leaves us, it's checked over by our horticultural team to make sure it's healthy, well-rooted, and ready to thrive in your home. We're not shifting volume off a pallet, we're choosing plants we'd want to keep ourselves.

When you buy from a supermarket, you get a plant and a generic care label. When you buy from us, you get the knowledge that comes with it, detailed care guidance, a team you can actually contact if something isn't going right, and the confidence that what's arriving has been looked after properly from the moment it was grown to the moment it reaches your door.

We're a specialist nursery first, not a retailer that happens to sell plants. That's the difference, and you'll see it the moment you open the box.
What should I do when my plant arrives?
First things first, unbox it as soon as you can. Plants don't love being in dark boxes any more than you would, and the sooner yours is out and breathing, the better.

Remove all the packaging carefully, give the soil a check with your finger, and water lightly if it feels dry. Then find it a spot with appropriate light, but avoid putting it straight into harsh direct sun or next to a radiator. Think of it like arriving somewhere new after a long journey: it needs a moment to adjust.

It's completely normal for your plant to look a little tired or droopy after transit. This is called transit stress, and most plants bounce back within a week or two. You might see a yellow leaf or some drooping, don't panic, and resist the urge to overwater or start repotting straight away.

Our advice for the first couple of weeks: leave it in its nursery pot, water it only when the top layer of soil feels dry, and let it acclimatise to your home's light, temperature, and humidity. Once it's settled in and showing signs of new growth, you can think about repotting or moving it to its permanent spot.

Every plant we sell comes with a care guide on the product page so you'll know exactly what it needs going forward. And if anything doesn't look right, get in touch with our team, we're always happy to help.
Will my plant survive being shipped?
Yes! and we go to serious lengths to make sure of it. Every plant is hand-packed by our team with protective wrapping and secure, custom-designed boxes to keep it stable and safe in transit. We've shipped hundreds of thousands of plants across the UK and our packaging methods have been refined over years to handle the bumps and jolts of delivery.

During colder months, we monitor weather forecasts and offer heat packs where needed to protect against frost. In extreme conditions, we may hold your order for a day or two rather than risk sending it out, we'd rather you wait an extra day than receive a stressed plant.

That said, plants are living things, and the occasional transit wobble can happen. If your plant arrives damaged or isn't in the condition you'd expect, just get in touch within 48 hours with a photo, and we'll make it right, whether that's a replacement or a full refund. No fuss.

The short version: we treat every box like it's going to someone who really cares about what's inside, because it is.
Why Grow Tropicals

Plants delivered the way they deserve

Packaged with Care

Packaged with Care

Every order is hand-packed in eco-friendly, protective packaging - refined through thousands of deliveries to ensure your plant arrives healthy, hydrated, and looking its best.

Backed by our Live Arrival Guarantee.

Perfect for Gifting

Perfect for Gifting

From rare collector’s pieces to easy-care favourites, our plants arrive fully potted and ready to enjoy. Add a personalised note at checkout for a thoughtful finishing touch.

Delivered fresh, beautiful, and gift-ready.

Sustainability at Heart

Sustainability at Heart

All plants are ethically sourced from trusted growers, never wild-collected. Every order ships carbon-neutral in minimal-waste packaging.

Good for your home - and the planet.

Verified reviews

Rated by real customers

You may also like

We recommend
Crocosmia 'Emily McKenzie'
£7.99