How to Grow Saffron in South Africa
Saffron (crocus sativus) is prized for its distinctive, subtle food flavoring across Asia, Europe, and North Africa. In Morocco, it is also used as a strong leather dye. When renske van Zyl first encountered saffron on a trip to Dubai, she had no clue what it was or how it was grown.
Fascinated, when she returned to South Africa, she started looking into how to cultivate it.
Thankfully, the region’s chilly, rainy winters and dry, scorching summers are perfect for cultivating saffron. The crop needed sandy, well-drained soil, and the farm’s soil met those requirements. Saffron can also resist occasional cold and snow, though this is rarely a factor.
The first week of march is when the saffron corms are sown. The soil is aerated and softened, followed by composting and fertilizing. In addition to 1t of superphosphate and 300kg of 1.0.1, around 15t of compost are needed per acre (36). Until the plants are mature, they are fertilized by a drip irrigation system every two weeks after the leaves have emerged at a concentration of 100l 1.0.1(14)/ha.
The plants are irrigated as needed with a drip irrigation rate of 4l/h with drippers positioned 0,6m apart. The soil must not become soaked, just moist. Renske emphasizes that saffron prefers dry conditions over moist ones. Hand planting is used to place the corms 10 cm deep, 25 cm apart, and 40 cm between rows.
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Harvesting
The first portion of the plant to emerge above ground is a white “spear.” the leaves come after that. Purple blooms bloom at ground level 40 days after the plant is planted. Saffron only has leaves from April to September and three weeks of annual flowering.
How long does it take for saffron to grow?
After planting, saffron crocus (crocus sativus) produces rapid jewel-toned blooms in the fall garden in 6–10 weeks (sometimes as short as 4-6 weeks).
Is saffron hard to grow?
Saffron is an exceptionally simple-to-grow purple fall-flowering crocus that should be planted in the late summer for flowers in just a few weeks. The rust-colored, tasty spice is what it produces.
Given its high cost, you might wonder if you can cultivate saffron crocus bulbs and produce your saffron. Yes, you can grow saffron in your backyard garden.
How much saffron can one plant produce?
How much saffron can one plant produce? Saffron is so pricey and sought-after because each bloom only yields a small quantity of the spice. One teaspoon of the spice can be harvested from about fifty blossoms. Therefore the more flowers you have, the more spice you can get!
