Crocus sativus
Saffron crocus
Common names: True saffron, Saffron
At a glance
- Light
- Full sun
- Spacing
- 10 cm, rows 15 cm
- Lifespan
- Perennial
- Planting
- Jul–Aug
- Harvest
- Oct–Nov
- Hardiness
- Hardy down to −15 °C
- Water need
- Low
Photo: KENPEI · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source
This description was machine-translated.
Description
The saffron crocus blooms in autumn with violet flowers and produces the world’s most expensive spice in its three red stigmas. Unlike spring crocuses, it develops its foliage in winter and flowers in October and November, making it a rewarding, winter-hardy corm crop for sunny, well-drained beds.
Care instructions
Plant the corms in July or August about 10 cm deep in lean, well-draining, sunny soil, waterlogging will cause rot. Harvest the flowers on dry mornings in October and November, carefully pluck the three red stigmas and dry them. Allow the foliage to die back after flowering and divide the corms every few years.
The care notes were machine-translated from German.
Garden year
PlantingJul–Aug
HarvestOct–Nov
Soil & site
Soil pH
Soil type
sandy, loamy, humus-rich, well-drained, lime-loving
Choose a warm spot in full sun with free-draining soil, because waterlogging makes the corms rot. Sandy loam with a little humus is ideal; loosen heavy soil with sand and mature compost before planting. The saffron crocus comes from Mediterranean limestone regions and copes well with chalky, slightly alkaline soils. Avoid acidic soils below pH 6, or lime them lightly beforehand.
Feeding
Light feeder
Months
Feb, Mar, Oct, Nov
The saffron crocus prefers a rather lean soil. Over-feeding harms the corms and reduces flowering. In spring, when the foliage emerges, work only a thin layer of mature compost shallowly into the bed surface; this feeds the corm for the autumn flowers. Alternatively, it is enough to work in a little mature compost or horn shavings shallowly in autumn before growth starts. A strong dose of nitrogen is not necessary and not wanted.
Overwintering
The corms of the saffron crocus stay in the ground and overwinter there. In the lowlands of Germany, Austria and Switzerland they are hardy once established. What matters is a well-drained, sandy soil, because winter wet makes the corms rot; in heavy or damp spots, cover them with a thin layer of leaves, straw or brushwood after the foliage has died back, and remove the protection again in spring.
Propagation
Methods
- Offsets
The saffron crocus is a sterile triploid and does not produce viable seed. Sowing is not possible. The only practical method is cormlets (daughter corms), which form naturally around the mother corm every year. Every 3 to 5 years, ideally during the dormant period from April to June once the foliage has completely died back, carefully dig up the corms. Gently separate the daughter corms from the mother corm and make sure each one keeps an intact neck (the shoot base at the top). Store them dry, cool and dark until planting, and do not leave them exposed for too long, as the corms dry out quickly. Plant them in late summer, from about August to September, in a fresh location, 10 to 15 cm deep and about 10 to 15 cm apart, in sunny, well-drained soil without waterlogging. In good conditions the number of corms doubles year after year; a single corm becomes several flowering-size offspring after a few years.
For your garden
Grow Saffron crocus yourself
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