🌸 Flower
ANX-FLOWER-0000031
Saffron Crocus
Crocus sativus
Saffron Crocus (Crocus sativus), a bulbous perennial of the Iridaceae family, is a sterile triploid unknown in the wild and propagated entirely by corm division, grown for the red stigmas harvested as the spice saffron.
Log in to request a quotation- Family
- Iridaceae
- Plant type
- Bulbous (corm) perennial
- Bloom color
- Lilac-purple with dark purple veins and red-orange stigmas
- Bloom season
- Early to mid-autumn (September-October)
- Mature height
- 10-15 cm cm
- Sun requirements
- Full sun to part shade
- Fragrance
- Not distinctly fragrant
- Native region
- Garden origin, true wild habitat unknown; likely derived from Crocus cartwrightianus of Greece/Crete, long cultivated across the Mediterranean and Southwest Asia
Growing
Growing Conditions
- Water requirements
- Medium moisture during active growth; prefers dry conditions during summer dormancy.
- Climate requirements
- Best in climates with long, dry summers and cold winters; hardy USDA zones 6-8.
- Soil types
- Average, gritty, well-drained soil; avoid heavy clay or waterlogged sites.
- Propagation method
- Corm offsets (cormels) only; sterile triploid, does not produce viable seed
Ecology
Pollinators & Toxicity
- Pollinator value
- Male-sterile and self-incompatible; produces little viable pollen and is not a significant pollinator resource.
- Toxicity
- Not toxic; distinct from the poisonous autumn crocus (Colchicum autumnale), with which it is sometimes confused.
Use
Uses & Economic Importance
- Uses
- Culinary spice (saffron) from hand-harvested stigmas, ornamental fall-blooming borders and rock gardens
- Economic importance
- Produces saffron, the world's most expensive spice by weight, requiring roughly 150,000-230,000 hand-picked flowers to yield 1 kg of dried stigma; Iran accounts for over 90% of world production.
Trade
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