Species Crocus, Autumn Crocus, Saffron Crocus

I can't figure out why mine won't sprout this year. I'm in USDA Zone 6B. I overwintered them indoors then put the pots back out. It is no...Read Morew Oct 8 and nothing came up. I just upended one pot and was surprised to see lots of little bulbs, looking firm and good but no hint of a sprout. 1/4" to 3/8 estimated diameters.

I grow them in pots because otherwise voles will eat them.

Per Jan Emming owner of the Destination:Forever Ranch and Gardens, a 40 acre desert botanical garden and sustainable living homestead in ...Read Morethe Arizona desert with a nursery:

"Saffron is a fascinating substance used as a food spice, as a dye, and as a medicine. It is the world's most costly spice, typically costing thousands of dollars per pound. The origins are highly unusual - it is the stigma of the saffron crocus, commonly named Crocus sativus in Latin. But the crocus bulbs used for the spice are not the same as the wild species, and it is thought that the actual progenitor of the saffron crocus is a species known as Crocus cartwrightianus, found on the island of Crete in the eastern Mediterranean Sea.

Saffron crocus is a beautiful small bulb in the iris family (Iridaceae) that blooms in the fall, usually October in the northern hemisphere. Flowers are a medium purple color with yellow stamens and a red three-lobed stigma. The stigma lobes are the source of the spice known as saffron.

Crocuses come from a bulb-like structure known as a corm, which is different anatomically from a bulb in that it is a thickened basal stem rather than tightly wrapped, modified leaves. Functionally speaking the two structures serve the same purpose, which is primarily food and water storage to get the plant through dry spells or cold winters in a dormant state. Crocuses are small, with the mature plants typically standing no more than 4 inches or so tall. Leaves are narrow and grasslike and tend to develop more fully after flowering is completed

The 3rd picture is of a field of saffron crocus flowers carpets the hillside of the Alps near Mund, southwestern Switzerland. This photo was taken on Friday, October 22, 2004. The harvest of the saffron flower had begun by this point, and went through October 30. This year's harvest was about 7 lbs/3kg.

In the next photo of the field of saffron crocus is in Pajhwok, Herat Province, Afghanistan. Saffron is commercially grown in fields from Spain to China, but the largest producer is Iran. Over 90% of saffron worldwide comes from Iranian plants, although the highest quality grades tend to come from small production fields of 10 to 80 acres (5 to 35 hectares) in European nations such as Italy, France, or Spain. High land and labor costs and the necessity of painstaking effort in the harvest season prevent European sources from producing much more than this, when Iranian exported saffron is much cheaper.

Field workers labor to harvest the saffron crocus flowers. They pick the entire flower and let the leaves remain behind to photosynthesize and store energy for next year's bloom crop. The flowering time is short, only about two weeks at most, and action must be swiftly taken to pick the flowers and separate out the stigmas for drying and sale.

Once the saffron flowers are picked, workers separate the red stigma lobes from the unwanted purple petals and the yellow stamens, which are discarded.

The fresh saffron stigmas are set to dry as soon as possible to preserve their quality and prevent spoilage by molding. Since each flower contains only one stigma with three lobes on it, this scene represents the aggregate production of at least several thousand flowers.

Saffron is bundled into shaving-brush like bunches in many Middle Eastern and Asian marketplaces. In others, it is sold in bulk in airtight containers or powdered first before sale. About 50,000 to 75,000 flowers are required to create a dry weight pound (454 grams) of saffron; the metric equivalent is 110,000 to 140,000 flowers per kilogram of dry weight.

Saffron is not all created equal in terms of its quality. The concentration of the active compounds and pigments varies between different clones of the plant, the environment in which it is grown, and how it is handled during and after harvest.

The highest quality saffron fetches about $5000/lb ($11,000/kg) at wholesale, while the cheapest strains cost as little as $500/lb ($1,100/kg). There are a number of parameters used to judge quality, but the highest grades have the deepest color and aroma and the least amount of extraneous material in it, such as leaf bits, dirt, or useless male stamens.

Saffron is also used as a dye for fabric and wool, including this merino sheep wool shown here. As with the food uses, the color can vary from pale yellow to reddish-gold. The depth of the final color depends upon the length of time the fabric is treated, the concentration of saffron used and its quality, and the type of fixative process utilized to set the dye and make it permanent.

The most familiar use of saffron is in various South Asian foods, especially curries such as this South Indian style seafood stew curry. In addition to lending a distinctive bright orange to yellow color to the food, the aroma and flavor has been described as "metallic honey with overtones of sweet hay".

Saffron is also used medicinally, not just in culinary applications. Research indicates that saffron may have a range of beneficial medical uses, including anti-cancer and antioxidant purposes, in prevention of retinal damage and macular degeneration of the eyes, and even to treat depression. More studies need to be done, but initial research seems promising.

Buddhist monks in Asia are well known for their saffron robes, which are an easy item of clothing used to distinguish them from the civilian population. Saffron is also used in incense, rituals, and as dye for paintings, sculptures, and so forth.

The saffron crocus is a most versatile plant product with a lengthy cultural history spanning numerous areas of human endeavor. Keep this in mind the next time you eat an Indian curry or Italian risotto, or see one of its many other uses."

I planted a few corms of Saffron Crocus last year. They bloomed from late October to almost the end of November. Very beautiful deep blue...Read More blooms. They were a welcome sight in my garden, when there wasn't much else still blooming that late in the Fall.

I can tell any useful information about saffron in persia if you like
by thanks~Hadi