How I Grow The Worlds Most Expensive Spice at Home, Saffron Crocus

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How to grow Saffron, the most expensive spice in the world. Planting Saffron Corms (bulbs), harvesting, drying, Saffron is the most expensive spice for good reason, but growing your own saffron and processing enough for a years supply is pretty easy.

Standard gear I recommend. I either use or have used all of it.

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Saffron is the most expensive spice in the world. How much does saffron cost? thousands of dollars a pound! However, it is relatively easy to grow, and since it is very potent and only a small amount is needed in cooking, it is easy to grow and process your own in your garden or homestead. Just don't try to grow saffron for profit unless you like long hours and low profits!

Saffron crocus, crocus sativa, is a small blue flower that blooms in the fall and grows during the winter. Each flower contains only 3 small red saffron threads, which are the female pollen receptacles. The threads are plucked by hand and dried to make the spice saffron, which is also used to dye cloth and give food a yellow color. It has a distinctive flavor as well as being used for traditional medicine. It is used to treat cancer and cardiovascular disease and depression.

Saffron is a corm, not a bulb. To properly plant saffron, the corms are planted in the early fall or late summer. They are eaten by gophers, voles, squirrels and other rodents. Planting in raised containers or wire lined beds can help deter rodents. After the flowers bloom, they will grow through the winter gathering energy for the following year's bloom. Growing your own saffron is easy. The corms are not the cheapest, but they multiply exponentially, so if you buy just 20 to 40, you'll have a lot of plants soon enough. A bed about 4 x 6 is a good size to shoot for if you are a moderate user. The corms should be divided every few years. They reproduce quickly by dividing underground.

Most saffron is grown in the middle east and Mediterranean, like Iran, Afghanistan and Spain but the plant is fairly widely adapted and cold tolerant.

See also the National Geographic Article, "The Secret History of the Worlds Priciest Spice"
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This video is so comforting and wholesome. I planted my saffron in 2018 after watching this video and it's doing great. Thanks!

directionknownme
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Very high quality video. Camera work, colour, composition, sound, everything is top notch. Educational and relaxing, too! You deserve a lot more views and subscribers.

gennoveus
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It's best if you pluck the flowers very early in the morning before they open up. Dry the stigmas in a dark hot room, preferably on the drier side (about 30-50% humidity). That way you will get more flavour and fragrance from them.

heerakbanerjee
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This video put a huge smile on my face. I used to work for a mushroom vendor and seeing you pick all these guys was amazing. Awesome haul!

loquatmuncher
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Lol ya the bumblebees do this with a few flowers in the fall I think they get cold and slow down too much to fly either way they make for a beautiful bed I would stay too lol

wildedibles
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Don't forget, great in rice, especially a nice mushroom risotto.

archetypalculinarian
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That I good educational watching I learn more about the world on you tube than high school.
i guess its the teacher great work

michaelwilliams
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This is a great video, if you have not already seen it, you can look up how to cut them for the different grades of saffron. I believe all the red part is highest grade then some with orange on and then the whole thing

Ohsnapski
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Wow. The amount of time put into this video is impressive. Thanks. =]

sevantookmanian
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I could even taste the spice from watching this, its heavenly!

fotofigures
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I've always wanted to grow Saffron here where I live. But it want grow. I live in America in NC and here we have a lot of farmers and they tried to get it to grow. And it want. Before you spend a lot of money on bulbs make sure it will grow!
❤ from America

saffronwetter
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Great video. Just watched the deer skinning then the apple butter and now this one... think got a winner here. Definitely worth a subscription

jeansimard
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What a beautiful and colourful video, amazing videography, I enjoyed it a lot. Can't wait to grow my own one day!

prehistoricliving
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I love that he didnt touch the one at the end that had the bee on it. Good Job!

tracyking
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If you want to bake with these tasty little things you could always try the Swedish Lussekatt, a christmasy sweet bread baked for Lucia (December 13th) here in Sweden.

clu
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This video is awesome! Mine just flowered today for the fist time!!!

raymondkyruana
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nice little film. restful and timeless, like saffron 🙂

catecurl
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At the very beginning and at around 0:35 I can see your wire cage. Do rodents not dig them up from the top? Has your cage you plant in been sufficient enough for pest control?

dudeitsamy
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Ive seen bumblebees fall asleep/get intoxicated on Cosmos flowers quite often too

paculand
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The flowers alone seem beautiful in their own right.

garethbaus