Saffron Crocus flower in the fall and are the source of Saffron Spice. They are easy to grow as a wild flower. And easy to harvest. But it's a time-consuming process to pick each Saffron thread out of every Saffron flower! It's so worthwhile, though, to grow them for yourself, especially since Saffron Spice is so expensive to buy.
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Saffron Crocus Are Interesting Plants to Grow!
In some ways, I think the long, grassy leaves that stay green all winter long, are the coolest part of the Saffron plant. But people are mostly just interested in the flower of the Saffron Crocus (Crocus sativus) - and not even the whole flower. Just the bright red threads that make Saffron Spice.
I'm not a great gardener of Saffron Crocus, not by a long shot. But I like that they are almost a wildflower. They can take care of themselves.
And their season of flowering is the opposite of most crocus. Saffron crocus flower in the autumn, instead of the spring. Here in western Oregon, the leaves and flowers start coming up in late October.
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Saffron Harvest - Picking the Flowers
Some folks say to harvest the Saffron threads before the flowers open up. Other folks say to harvest them a few hours after the flowers open. Honestly, between the two, I can't tell any difference in the quality of the Saffron Spice. I just pick flowers as I see them.
When the weather is wet, the flowers can get pretty bedraggled. But the threads inside the flower are usually OK. Regardless of the weather, I go out every day and pick the Saffron flowers that are ready - over a two to three-week period.
Once the Saffron flowers are done flowering, I cover the whole area with a layer of wood chips. And they are good to go for the rest of the year.
I have them planted in a spot that gets the hot afternoon sun. And they don't even want any water, through the whole dry summer here in western Oregon. That's because they go dormant and lose their leaves and disappear during the summer.
If you grow Saffron Crocus and have any tips, let me and everyone else know in the comments below.
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Processing Saffron Threads After Harvest
Once I've picked the flowers, I need to get the Saffron threads out and dried. It's an easy process. I just pull the Saffron threads out, put them on a plate, and let them dry out of the direct sunlight.
Every year, the number of flowers seems to triple. And as my crop of Saffron threads has gotten larger and larger, I realize -- growing and harvesting Saffron spice is not a practical retirement plan, even though Saffron threads sell for a good price!
I'm not going to process hundreds of thousands of these Saffron threads over 2 to 3 weeks. I'm happy doing just a few at a time, building up a stock of Saffron threads that will last me for a few months.
The flowers have such a pleasant scent that it's a shame to toss them out. So I keep them in a vase for a few days. They fill a whole room with a wonderful aroma. It reminds me of my grandmother.
When the Saffron threads have dried out for a few days, I put them in a jar, and store them in my pantry, where it is really dark. If you have any tips or suggestions for cooking with Saffron, let us all know in the comments. So far, my favorites have been Saffron-Braised Celery with wild flowers and wild pin cherries, and Saffron Fingerling Potatoes, with wild chanterelle mushrooms and wild garlic potatoes.
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The flowers with the Saffron-Braised Celery are fresh Redbud (Cercis canadensis), Wild Field Mustard (Brassica rapa), and Yellow Deadnettle (Lamiastrum galeobdolon), pickled Elephant Garlic flowers (Allium ampeloprasum). And the cherries are wild pin cherries (Prunus avium).
Saffron Fingerling Potatoes: butter and saffron, served over Cherry Tomatoes. The other dishes on the plate use Wild Garlic (Allium vinale) leaves and top-set bulbs with Red Pontiac Potatoes. And Wild Pacific Golden Chanterelle mushrooms (Cantharellus formosus).
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Some of my gardening playlists:
Potatoes - An easy and productive garden crop - • Potatoes - An easy and...
Elephant Garlic: How to get the most out of growing Elephant Garlic - • Elephant Garlic - How ...
Collards: How To Grow and Use ALL of Your Collard Plants - • Collards: How To Grow ...
Here's my KZfaq channel:
/ haphazardhomestead
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My mailing address:
Haphazard Homestead
PO Box 40721
Eugene, OR 97404
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Music: "Orbital Romance" by Sir Cubworth, "One Step Closer" by Aakash Gandhi, and "One Fine Day" by Audionautix from KZfaq music archive. One Fine Day by Audionautix is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution license (creativecommon...)
Artist: audionautix.com/