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Saffron is not only a special spice because of the enormous prices. So only the handles of the flowers have the bitter and spicy aroma.
Saffron (Crocus sativus) belongs to the iris family (Iridaceae). With an average price of around €10 to €15 - per gram! - it is the most expensive spice in the world. For comparison: the price of a gram of gold fluctuates around €35. Since saffron is a type of crocus, it has a tuber - and not a bulb, as is often wrongly assumed. The tuber drives out again year after year. Saffron is one of the autumn crocuses, as it only drives and blooms in the second half of the year. Some of its relatives, who herald spring in our gardens, also differ from saffron in that they have significantly shorter stigmas. With the noble spice from the Aegean, these are conspicuously red in color and long. They are also the only organ of saffron that has the characteristic bitter and spicy flavor and aroma. Each of the blue-violet flowers develops three such precious stigmas. The noble crocus species was created through a mutation of a related species that has significantly shorter stigmas. The plant, which is just a maximum of 15 cm tall, has a triple set of chromosomes due to the mutation. As a result, saffron cannot form pollen and is sterile. Propagation can only take place via the so-called vegetative route. The largest growing areas are in consistently warmer regions on the Mediterranean and in the Middle East, but with a little skill you can also grow saffron in your own garden.
Synonyms: red gold
Growing Saffron
Location
In Europe, saffron is mainly grown in Mediterranean countries such as Italy and Spain. However, Iran has the largest market share at 80 to 90%. These countries are particularly suitable for growing saffron because of their warmth and the many hours of sunshine. In any case, a place should be chosen where the saffron will still get plenty of rays of light from the lower autumn sun when it sprout. Furthermore, a well-draining soil with a certain amount of sand is an advantage. Waterlogging must be avoided in any case. Is the floor too heavy and leadsIf the water does not drain off well, sand can be worked in to achieve a more favorable water flow. You can also grow saffron in pots. A peat-free soil such as our Plantura organic universal soil is best used for this. In addition, a location that is as sheltered as possible from the wind is important for the saffron.
Propagate and plant
Planting time for the saffron bulbs is from June to August. The planting depth should be 10 to 15 cm and the distance in the row should be 10 cm. The tubers sprout in the same autumn and bloom in October. Saffron is an evergreen plant - the foliage stays put during the cold months and only dries up in the following spring. At temperatures from -15 °C, however, it can slowly but surely become critical for the survival of the saffron.
As already mentioned, saffron is sterile due to its triploid chromosome set. Propagation via seeds (so-called generative propagation) is therefore out of the question. The noble spice can only be propagated asexually (so-called vegetative propagation). As is usual for crocuses, the saffron tubers develop daughter tubers at the base of the tubers. These, in turn, can be dug out of the ground and planted next summer.
Watering and fertilizing
Regarding the water supply, the most important thing for the saffron is that it does not have to experience waterlogging. Additional watering is actually only necessary in extreme dryness and heat in late summer and autumn. When cultivating in a pot, no additional fertilization is required. If the saffron is planted in the bed, it is sufficient to improve the soil in the spring with a dose of mainly organic long-term fertilizer. Our Plantura organic universal fertilizer is ideal.
Saffron-Care
In general, saffron is not particularly susceptible to pests and diseases. Nevertheless, after a while, soil-borne fungi can cause problems in the same location and endanger the life of the tuber. Therefore, after four years, the location of the iris plant should be changed in any case. Voles like all bulbs and tubers, so it is not certain whether the rodents will leave some of the saffron bulb behind for the next shoot. The reason why saffron cultivation is particularly productive and successful in warmer regions is the rather warm prevailing temperatures there, even in autumn. Temperatures of around 15 °C are ideal for saffron for good and reliable flower development. At times ofearly autumn, these will not be achieved continuously here. This is at the expense of the number of bulbs that reach flowering and thus leads to a lower yield.
If you want to grow saffron yourself, take a look at our growing guide.
Saffron: harvesting and storing
The area yield of saffron is comparatively extremely low. In order to be able to market 1 kg of saffron, 150,000 to 200,000 saffron nodules must grow and bloom on 10,000 m2. This leads to extremely high costs per gram. In addition, the harvest of the saffron is purely manual. A practiced person manages to harvest just 60 to 80 g of the valuable spice a day. The harvesting time of the bright red saffron sticks is limited to two to three weeks in October. The so-called thinning out with tweezers or, if you practice, with your fingernails, describes the separation of the style from the remaining sterile flower. This can either be done directly on the plant, leaving the decorative purple petals, or the entire flower is harvested first. Then the stigmas are later separated from the rest of the flower. In any case, harvesting in the morning hours is beneficial. In this way, the sensitive scars can be protected from extreme solar radiation and a loss of aroma.
To preserve saffron, the stigmas can be dried after harvesting. That's very quick. In the sun, the process takes a maximum of one hour. After the drying process, the pencils have lost around 40% of their fresh weight. In most cases, the handles are stored as a whole in the form of the typical saffron threads. They are rarely ground into powder. This is also very easy to confuse with the powder obtained from the rhizome of turmeric. Fake saffron powder, which is actually turmeric, can be found on the market and is a very lucrative business for the counterfeiter. If the saffron threads are hermetically sealed and protected from light, they can be used for up to two years without losing their aroma. The dark storage also keeps the color of the saffron longer.
You can find even more information worth knowing in our article Saffron: Harvesting and storing the red gold correctly.
Saffron: Uses and Ingredients
Saffron is known for its yellow-reddish color and bitter-spicy taste. Carotenoids are responsible for the discoloration. It is also great for intensifying the color of various dishes in the kitchenpopular. But even in past centuries, the dyes of saffron were used to color in a wide variety of ways. For example, it was used to imitate the color of gold lettering.
The bitter substance it contains is also known as saffron bitter. If saffron is used to refine various dishes, it should never be cooked too long. If the cooking time is too long, the color may be less intense at the end and the flavors will evaporate. It is best to prepare the pencils in lukewarm water and only put them in the saucepan at the end of the preparation. If saffron is to be used in powder form, it is best to always use a fresh mortar and pestle to prepare the meal.
Saffron is particularly popular in Persian rice dishes. But there are also some classics in European cuisine that are refined with saffron:
- Paella: Spanish rice dish, often with seafood.
- Bouillabaisse: Fish and seafood soup from Provence.
- Risotto alla milanese: Risotto Milanese style.
- Lusskatter: Swedish quark pastry.
Safran is special in many respects. But if you don't want to do without the noble spice, you can avoid the high prices with a little skill and care by growing it in your own garden.