Golden rain...

We've always called this Golden Rod but it seems it's actually Montbretia. I've been aware of it all of my life, from the days when I used to nick pick it for my Grandma from the Aged Miner's Homes allotments to the clumps of it that spread like wildfire around our garden.

There's no doubting it's a striking colour with an orange, almost a burnt orange that makes the marigolds look a bit insipid. Oddly the marigolds (that the rabbits didn't eat) are called African marigolds and this plant originates from Africa. Someone, somewhere will know how it got here to the UK.

I photographed it against some orange corrugated card simply to see what it would look like.

Info off the web...

This plant is a man-made hybrid between Potts Montbretia (Crocosmia Pottsii) and Falling Stars (Crocosmia Aurea) which was performed in France.

Some similarities to : Pott's Montbretia (crocosmia pottsii) and to Aunt Eliza Crocosmia paniculata) and to Giant Montbretia (Crocosmia masoniorum).

Distinguishable from Giant Montbretia by the lack of pleating (corrugating) in the leaves, and by the deep orange colour of the flowers, red in Great Montbretia.

Name derived from the Greek, crocos = crocus or saffron, and osmos= smell or odour because it has the aroma of saffron when moist, saffron being a spice: the stigmas of the crocus flower. Montbretia is not native, but widely escaped from gardens now growing on seaside cliff tops, and grassy banks near the sea, hardly ever inland. It is to be found, or was in 1965, all the way along the Isle of Man tramway between Laxey, through Minorca to Onchan Head.

Montbretias grow from corms, which are easily split into numerous parts. Montbretia spreads rather vigorously via a proliferation of these under-ground corms. A barrier from ground level to 6 inches below ground will prevent this type of spreading. Because of this propensity to spread rapidly it has been regarded as a problem plant, to be controlled. No other plants can grow where Montbretia spreads because of the dense strap-like foliage and the fact that the numerous corms form an impenetrable almost conglomerate-like continuous seal about 3 inches below ground level. The corms are similar in form to garlic cloves, but as hard as conkers.