Ed . note : This article supplement a gravid feature on mature a global garden in the Spring 2025 issue ofNorthern Gardener . get wind more about this issue and how you may read it onlinehere .
Saffron is a fall - flowering crocus prized for its foresightful scarlet mark . Saffron ( Crocus sativa ) is a specific cultivar that is believe to have originated in Greece , some 3,000 - 4,000 yr ago ( 1700 BCE ) . It is predominantly work in Iran , a lovesome , arid clime we do n’t readily tie in with Minnesota gardens .
What make saffron expensive isthe extraordinary harvest . Three elongated stigma are hand - harvest from every flower . It takes upwards of 4,500 flowers to give an Panthera uncia , which can cost over $ 150 . venerate not , it ’s sold in hundredth of an ounce ( 1 g portions ) which make it low-cost . If you ’ve cooked with saffron , you know the price you make up for a pinch . And also value the color and look it brings toMediterranean and Indian dishesalike . remember paella and tagines , pilafs and risotto .
EachCrocus sativaflower comes with only 3 prized stigma, but each one is worth the harvesting!
Saffron is a extremely strange spice to grow in cold-blooded clime , but it is viable . I ’ve had success harvesting saffron from first year bulbs . Like other crocus , it ’s circularize by corm , a bulb from which the plant is propagated . My current saffron crocus planting is tucked into ourcold framein the hopes of establishing a perennial patch . Saffron is purported to be dusty dauntless to zone 5 , so many readers can give this a try in a warm corner of their gardens .
Saffron Growing Tips
Order orange yellow electric light in mid - summer for a fall planting .
Plant saffron bulbsin a potor frigid frame in former September , protected from early fall temperature variation . It will bloom in mid- to belated October .
Be vigilant jibe your plants . They will go from green leaves to an open flower in a topic of hours .
Crocus bulbs prepared for planting!
Harvest stain promptly and let air dry out . You ’ll be lucky if you glean enough to employ in a repast , but the curiosity of a pin - flowering crocus was enough for me to grow the center of a February rash and is as angelic , crunchy , and invigorated as the day we harvested it in October .
Meg Cowdenis a ego - taught gardener , writer and photographer , who has mature to love northern horticulture . Her book isPlant Grow Harvest Repeat(Timber Press , 2022 ) .
Learn more inNorthern Gardener®magazine…
Four seasonal outcome full of growing confidential information and featured gardens — written and edited by local northern gardening pros just for you .
