Crocuses are unusual and very attractive flowers. Saffron is their other name. Having grown them in a pot, you can give these flowers for the new year or any other holiday.
Besides, everyone knows an expensive and rare spice - saffron. Photos (the flowers on them are processed by hand - stamens are extracted from them and used not only as a spice, but also as medicine and dye) demonstrate the complexity of its production. Let's look at the features of growing crocuses. And also give examples of their use and mention the glorious history that these flowers have.
Saffron or crocus
The bulbous ornamental plant blooms most often in early spring. There are about 80 types of crocuses. They grow in Europe, in the Crimea, Iran, Turkey. In nature, some of them have become rare. Ecologists have long proposed to list these flowers in the Red Book. Saffron is an Arabic name. This word means "yellow". So crocus began to be called due to the fact that the stigmas of plants that are harvested for the manufacture of spices and dyes have this shade. The flower also owes the same detail of its structure to the second, ancient Greek name, derived from “kroke”, which means “fiber” or “thread”. After all, dried stigmas just remindfibers. It is for their sake that these flowers have long been grown and collected in the wild.
Saffron in history and culture
This plant is mentioned in the ancient papyri of Egypt. Famous healers of that time and philosophers spoke about its healing properties. Even then, saffron (a flower whose photo allows us to see its delicate beauty) was highly valued. It was used to produce a high-quality natural dye, which was necessary to decorate the clothes of high-ranking government officials. And also he served for the manufacture of incense, medicines, exquisite seasonings. Saffron is mentioned even in the written sources of the Sumerian civilization and in the Old Testament. It was often presented as a gift to kings and emperors. There is a beautiful legend about how crocuses appeared on earth. Allegedly, the god Hermes accidentally, in the heat of a competitive game, killed his close friend Krok. Mourning for him, he turned the drops of his blood into amazing flowers.
A valuable spice and garden decoration
Crocuses bloom for a short time, just one week. Collect them for making seasoning should be in the morning at dawn, until the sun has risen and warmed the air. The stamens extracted from each flower are sorted and processed by hand. This is incredibly hard and painstaking work. Therefore, saffron has long been learned to fake by mixing parts of another plant, weighting. Even if you are not a connoisseur of exclusive spices, crocus may be of interest to you as oneof the most beautiful corms. Ornamental gardening currently knows a huge variety of varieties with beautiful flowers that will decorate your site, successfully fitting into rock gardens and flower beds. In order to admire one of the brightest primroses in spring, you should plant the bulbs in the soil in September.
