;D..can't really brag with the quantity of the crop but even just one flower is exciting.
Now I've got 3 bits of saffron drying out.. ;D With a bit of luck there is more to follow.
Oooh lucky you! Planted 12 bulbs last year and have four little shoots only just appearing.
Looks like a crocus. What is it?
crocus sativus- saffron crocus- I would guess
Yep, that's it..saffron.. ;D
Those first three strands that I collected should spice up couple of handfulls of rice.. ::)
Not much, but its better than nothing.. ;D
OOoh how fab, Ive heard that they are tempremental to grow how have you got on with them?
x sunloving
Well..I planted them into large black tub to give extra 'heat' for soil until flowering time, I made best possible planting mixture with LOADS of grit and place the tub into open space with unrestricted amount of sun... ::) Once the autumn leaves started to emerge I gave thorough watering and allowed the soil almost dry out before flooding the planter again..that is how the land is treated on 'native' growing areas. My intention was that once the flowering start I could move the planter into GH so the rain would not spoil any flowers, but..I didn't take into account the size of my planter and how heavy it would become with all the grit.. ::) so I ended up making temperary 'construction' around it...
Found good info site for saffron production...
http://www.docstoc.com/docs/8564680/Growing-saffron---the-world%E2%80%99s-most-expensive-spice (http://www.docstoc.com/docs/8564680/Growing-saffron---the-world%E2%80%99s-most-expensive-spice)
I've got mine in troughs in the poly, got 9 out of 10 growing :)
Saffron harvest is going well...4 flowers so far.... ::) ;D (http://www.freesmileys.org/smileys/smiley-happy057.gif) (http://www.freesmileys.org/smileys.php)
I'll be flogging some of it in Ebay soon.. ;)
Great news Goodlife,thats something else we can consider growing in the poly when we get one.
Dare I ask is there any particular method to grow them or is it just "finger hole..seed in and heel in""
or you you have to use a suitable growing medium.
I luv using it in curries so this would get my vote if I could grow ANY next season.
Cheers
Gazza1960
saffron is propagated by bulb only.
Gazza..like plainleaf said...bulbs only.
I've spoiled my first couple of saffron bits by not drying them correctly... ::)
I finally read the whole document that I posted the link for on previous message..and there it says, saffron needs rapid drying with heat.. ::)
Last two bits I did put on small plate near woodburner and those turned out to be much better.
Oh..this saffron 'business' is turning out to be long learning curve..so many small details to get right. But I love good challence.
yep,thanks plainleaf,just found this bulb buying link..... :D
http://www.marshalls-seeds.co.uk/saffron-bulbs-crocus-sativus-100-bulbs-pid4178.html
Cheers
Gazza
PS..just saw your reply Goodlife,so thanks too !!!!!! yes I will read the link on your post...its pretty indepth
from what I have read so far which is great.
Many bulbs are very slow from seed; saffron may well be one of these. There are exceptions (regale lilies for instance) which flower in a couple of years, but the norm is to wait a lot longer than that.
mine today ;D
Cheers for UL the pics manicscousers,im assuming they are in a poly tunnel then.
How long since you planted to bulbs to get to that stage then..?
Gazza
they were put in about beginning of october, in troughs to keep them from sluggies, on shelves in the poly. High up so they get the light :)
Robert_Brenchley saffron crocus can not be propagated by seed at all do to it's genetic chromosomal structure.
If you cannot propagate saffron from seeds how did it arrive in the first place. Are you saying that every saffron plant is a clone of every other one? Actually a bit of successful surfing found me the answer.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-03/uol-lia030410.php
I bet is general 'thumb of rule' that it doesn't set seed. Like with other similar 'non-seeding' plants..there is always odd rare exception...otherwise crosses would not happen. They just need that specific set of conditions to be able do so.
Now my rattling is not based on anything scientific..just my own thoughts..
Manics..your bulbs are doing well.. ;D..did you get them from Sutton's saffron sale?
It will be interesting if they still flower for you with the late planting...mine were planted July and those took weeks to show any signs growth.
I planted 30 bulbs into 2.5 ft x 1 ft 'planter'..next spring I'm going to 'sacrifice' few bulbs, dig them up and start another planter..yes, already.. ::)
My planter is actually old fashion step-aerobics step..nothing like recycling.. ;D Planting in them is best use for them... ::)..aerobics.. ::) Good thing is that they are STRONG..they will last for years to come.. ;D
I bought mine from ebay, goodlife, I'm looking forward to seeing them flower ;D
Hurrah... both batches of Saffron Crocus are showing now.... I had one lot that I'd bought from Suttons, and some tiny bulbs that came from a friend where he'd rescued some corms that had spent pretty much a year in a drawer.... they'd sprouted, hardly had any light (we got them into pots as soon as they were found but it was May...) when they died down I had a rummage through the pots adn a lot of the corms broke down to reveal two or three mini corms embedded in the fibrous rubbish that had been the old corm.... so I planted them in a 15-cell module tray to keep an eye on them and a good few are up now.... hopefully I can grown them on into something bigger.... the Suttons ones are in three large terracotta pots and I'll be moving them into the GH soon...
chrisc
Nothing like bit of growing success.. ;) ;D I'm prone to do A&E for some 'lost cases' too.. ;D
I've got couple of more flower buds on mine..so then my total yield would be 5 flowers out of 30 bulbs.. ::)..oh well..it's better than "poke with sharp stick in the eye". And now I can make small saffron spiced dish too..just enough for a taster.. ;D
Plan is to spice a rice mixture that I stuff squash with. I just have to wait for those last buds to flower, harvest the 'crop', dry it..and maybe make a special christmas dish..just for me.. ;D
Mine are up and a similar size to yours Manics. Fingers crossed for some flowers soon.
mine seem to have side shoots, too, maybe the bulbs have split already? ???
Yes..mine has 'side shoots' too.."each bulb is capable to produce several flowers"..It will be interesting to see how soon those 'baby bulbs' appear..I'm going to have little dig into the planter next spring.
Interesting little read about saffron..
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/foodanddrink/8881165/Wild-about-saffron-A-whiff-of-the-exotic-heading-our-way.html (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/foodanddrink/8881165/Wild-about-saffron-A-whiff-of-the-exotic-heading-our-way.html)
I bought this up again..
The tops of my saffron has died back now and the bulbs have gone to 'rest'.
Couple months ago when the leaves were still green I gave the bulbs a feed of tomato fertilizer and I'm hoping it will 'boost' the bulbs flowering capability in few months time.
Now that there is no growth..I've put glass back over the planter to keep rain off as what I've read the bulbs like to 'rest' in dry conditions and once the growth start again they will like plenty of moisture again.
I'm also going to give a inch 'mulch' of gritty compost soon with bit of BFB so the 'snap' is there available when the bulbs are ready to use it.
I'm hoping a better harvest this year..last year I only ended up with 5 strands of saffron.. ::)..target is to double it this year.. ;D How did you ended up with your saffron harvest?
Got nothing and as far as I can tell the bulbs have disappeared into nothing as well.... they were growing happily and I wasn't expecting flowers this year but they don't seem to have formed bulbs.... I'm going to riddle the top few inches of the soil from the pots they were in (massuive terracottas)
chrisc
No saffron this year, the bulbs have died down and are outside , will cover and feed later in the season, here's hoping for some flowers in autumn :)
I've just been turning out my pots with saffron bulbs as they have been in for 2 seasons. I'm going to repot with fresh compost/earth in the next day or so. I've had a few pesky mice burrowing in, hard to know if they have done much damage? A range of bulb sizes to be replanted, fingers crossed some of these flower again in the autumn.
Has any of your bulbs started to grow yet?
I had to dig into planter to see if they are still alive as nothing is showing yet, last year this time there was already some top growth above the soil level. All the bulbs are there but still dormant.
It must be the weather that have messed up with their growth this year :dontknow: