Cultivate saffron

Saffron is one of the most expensive spice in the word and a very fascinate plant. It is harvested from the flowers of Crocus sativus (Iridaceae) and its propagations originated from bulbs called “corms” from which grow new bulbs. The saffron plants bloom in autumn and flowers are harvested to obtain the red pistils, that we all know as “saffron pistils“, from which the spice is extracted. Each bud produces three stigmas, which are carefully picked by hand. Flowers have to be collect by sunrise to be sure that they don’t wither. This process is long and complicated and requires great attention. This explains why saffron has become so precious that it is called “red gold.”

Crocus is cultivated in countries such as Iran, India, Afghanistan, Italy, France, New Zealand, Pennsylvania, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Morocco, Turkey and some areas of China. As saffron cultivation is widespread in different parts of the world, planting techniques can also vary depending on the climate, the type of soil, the planting depth and the distance between the bulbs.

Book the saffron bulbs for the 2019 season

Soil

Crocus sativus bulbs are adapted to the soil in which they are deeply planted. They grow well on the arid or semi-arid ground.

The bulbs are well suited to calcareous soil, which is neutral clay with a pH of 6 to 8. They also grow well on ferruginous, sedimentary and sandy soils enriched with organic material.

In New Zealand, bulbs grow well on sandy and clay soils. What is really important is that the soil allows the roots to make their way deep down and that it is well drained to prevent the bulbs from rotting or becoming infected.

Climate

Saffron adapts to wide climatic variations (from -10 ° C to + 40 ° C), but prefers milder climates between + 7 ° C and + 19 ° C. That is why saffron can be grown in dry, moderate and continental climates, but not in tropical or polar climates.

Crocus Sativus is very resistant bulbous plant. Heat, dry and hot summers, will not be a problem at all, but it coul be necessary cover the plants with straw or fibre tissue to protect bulbs from very low temperature.

Spring and autumn weather conditions are considered suitable for the development of the bulbs, as it means a higher production of flowers and cormlets (daughters bulbs).

Sowing

When planting saffron for the first time it is best to choose, if possible, a plot of virgin soil where no other tuber and bulb of saffron has ever been planted before (otherwise, at least not in the last six years).

Before sowing, it is advisable to plough the soil to a depth of 30 to 40 centimetres, to keep the sowing beds free and well ventilated, and incorporating organic fertilisers during the process. The type of soil in Spain, in particular, needs this pre-sowing preparation.

Sowing takes place in August and September (May and June in the northern hemisphere) and harvesting takes place from the end of October to mid-November, about eight weeks after sowing.

Bulbs are sun-loving plants, so it is best to plant them in open and dry soils. Generally, the bulbs are planted at a depth of 7-15 centimetres. The deeper they are planted, the less they multiply, and the less abundant the crop, but the higher the quality of the flowers produced.
Bulbs are planted in parallel rows. Each row, ideally, is 15-20 centimetres from the other.

Every time a new row is dig, the earth should be use to cover the previous one. It should be leave a free space between the rows to facilitate maintenance.

Spacing

The spacing between the saffron bulbs depends to a large extent on their size. When saffron is grown in Italy, farmers plant the bulbs at a distance of 2-3 centimetres and at a depth of 10-15 centimetres, a technique that ensures that they harvest more abundant flowers and bulbs.

In Greece, farmers maintain a distance of 25 centimetres between each row and 12 centimetres between the bulbs, buried at a depth of 15 centimetres. In Spain, the rows are 3 cm apart and the bulbs 6.

In India, the distance between rows is 15-20 centimetres, the distance between bulbs is 7.5-10 centimetres. Spacing also depends on how often unearthing takes place. The unearthing consists in the complete extraction of the bulbs from the ground to separate the mother bulbs from the child bulbs that have been formed and to store them for the next planting season.

Two-year unearthing requires spacing between the bulbs between 5 and 10 centimetres; for a more extended period, it calculates 10-20 centimetres.

Pesticides

When growing saffron, protective measures must be taken against birds, rodents and rabbits. Bulb rot, plant rust and other pathogens must be prevented from damaging crocus plants.

Uncovering

To coltivate saffron is possible use two different method:
– Annual technique: bulbs are unearthed every year;
– Poliannual tecnique: bulbs are unearthed every 2-3 years;

In Spain and Italy, unearthing takes place between June and July; in Greece – between May and June.

Once the saffron leaves turn brown and wither, the bulbs are dormant and ready to be unearthed. The fields are overturned using a hoe or a mechanical plough, and the bulbs are harvested by hand.

Bulbs are cleansed of weeds and unusable bulbs.
The bulbs must not be out in the sun for more than two hours.
Grouped bulbs are stored in a place protected from light, dry, and well ventilated, until the next planting season.

Weeding

To tear up rooted weeds it’s necessary a long and accurated work.
Mechanical weeding can be used in saffron cultivation, but there is a risk of damaging the bulbs.

Many farmers prefer to do it traditionally. The longer the rooted weeds remain in the soil where the saffron plants grow, the harder it will be to remove them. It’s important pay attention to the health state of our colture.

Harvesting the saffron

Around mid-October, the saffron flowers begin to blossom, and this flowering lasts about three weeks. This is followed by a period of intense flowering, called “The days of cover,” which lasts from two to six days. The flowers, which appear during the night, must be picked by the dawn of the following day, until noon at the latest, to avoid the petals drowning.

It is better to collect the flowers still “dormant” or closed to ensure high-quality saffron pistils.

Blossoming

Once harvested, flowers are cleaned with a process called “mondatura”. Stigmas, or pistils, are removed by hand with great care and attention. The white and yellow parts of the stigma are not removed, only the red ones.

Drying

Immediately after “mondatura”, pistils are dried with a process known as “roasting”. Stigmas are very moist, so they have to be dried at a temperature of not more than 60°C. After roasting the pistils will have considerably reduced in size and weight, up to 80% of the original ones. It’s necessary five kilos of fresh stigmas to obtain a single kilo of dry pistils of vivid red colour. The stigmas can be dried using burning coals or an oven. Pistils are spread on a wire mesh, coverd with baking paper or cloth, and put near the heat source until they are dry enough. For drying large quantities of pistils, could be used a special room with at a temperature of 30-35 °C for 10-12 minutes. A more modern method consists in a process of dehydration at 49°C for 3-4 hours circa.

Storage

When the pistils are dry, they assume a vivid red colour, which fades into dark orange at the tips. They shall be cooled and wrapped in aluminium foil or cloth and placed in hermetically sealed jars, covered and stored in a secluded place for at least 30 days before they are ready for use. They can stay in that corner for a year and still be suitable for seasoning dishes.

Plant cycle in saffron cultivation

The saffron bulbs go through active, transitory and dormant phases. In the active period roots, shoots, leaves and flowers develop. Follows the transitional period that occurs when bulbs become parent bulbs and produce new bulbs or child bulbs. Finally in the dormant period bulbs reach the mature stage and no longer produce bulbs. To make them productive again, the saffron bulbs should be removed from the ground and set aside for a while before being replanted.
As far as the sowing area is concerned, it would be ideal to leave a field of saffron “resting” for at least six years after it has been exploited for a cultivation cycle so the land can recover and become fertile again. To start a new cycle, it is better to move to a virgin field. This will ensure you a durable plantation, which will give you a good production.

Bulb size

Bulbs are classified according to their dimensions. Apparently, production depends on the size of the bulb. A study carried out at a Turkish university concluded that the larger the mother bulbs, the more children bulbs will be produced and more abundant will be the production of flowers and stigmas. The same study has also also shown that the regeneration of saffron bulbs is significantly reduced over the years. For this reason in the multi-year saffron cultivation, it is suggested planting smaller bulbs in virgin fields to enable it to increase in size.

Book the saffron bulbs for the 2019 season