See Full Description . Each crocus has three small stigmas that have to be picked carefully by hand. Buying bulk saffron bulbs is different from buying 20 or 40 bulbs. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously. Earning profits using your hydroponic system is not a difficult job to do, especially, when you choose a highly valuable crop to grow like saffron. Growing Coffee In A Grow Tent: Is It Possible? Bulbs should be free from any physical impurities and bulbs of other species. After planting, water well. Saffron bulbs should be disinfected with suitable fungicides and acaricides at the time of planting. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience. Renske says that on some days, there are just one or two flowers ready for picking, while on other days there may be dozens. In general, for every 100 kg of bulbs, you need to consume 300 to 500 grams of animal manure. Stay tuned for the first newsletter in the morning, straight to your inbox. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. Because of its high cash value, saffron is known as Golden Condiment throughout the world. To get 1 lb of dried saffron threads, you have to harvest the stigmas of around 67,500 Crocus Sativus flowers. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. When Do You Divide Saffron Bulbs? Self-propagating. New bulbs about two to three or even more are formed each season and this is how the plants are increased and multiplied. Your email address will not be published. Loosen the soil and free the land from previous crop debris, stones, rocks, and soil clods by repeated plowing. The forest needs to be mature enough to cast full shade; moist, well-drained soil is ideal. However, dollar signs shouldnt be rolling down your eyes right now. Whatever saffron corms stay out of the soil probability of contamination gets increased and a big part of our investment gets in danger. The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. The stigma threads in the middle of a saffron flower are the most important part of the entire plant. Cooled dry threads are then wrapped either in tissue or foil papers and kept in airtight jars or Aluminum containers for at least 30 days before they can be used. Who deals with explosives in the military? The bulbs should not have more than 2% activated sprouts at the time of delivery. Planting saffron. Saffron is widely used in many industries as a dye in textiles, as an aroma in perfume making, and in many cosmetics. Secondly, I would be glad if I can connect with a saffron farmer in Nigeria or any other location. The pot should be relatively deep and spacious. In fact, better too dry than too wet for saffron, stresses Renske. This article was originally published in the30 August 2013 issue of Farmers Weekly. Real saffron can cost you over $10,000 per kilogram. Im very much interested in farming saffron but the part Ive not been able to figure out is the marketing aspect. Saffron is expensive for two reasons (1) labour intensiveness; (2) rarity. Non-Blooming Saffron Crocus Triage Old bulbs could be the reason for saffron not flowering. The best storage Temperature would be between 20-25 degrees Celsius (70-80F). The traditional saffron planting method is based on human sources and doesnt use the sources as efficiently. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Till quantity and quality are approved in the open market, till then gardeners and young entrepreneurs can still give a try as this spice can still afford the good prices in the market. Saffron Bulbs (Crocus Sativus) storage The Crocus Sativus bulbs need to be stored in a dry, well ventilated environment. Bulbs or corms are the reproductive parts that give rise to 2 or 3 new ones each year. Each bed is raised up to a height of about 20 to 35 cm. Keep the soil moist after planting the bulbs by watering the container. Dear Leah, we provide a healthy and excellent crop of Saffron (Crocus Sativus) bulbs. Thanks in advance! This means that in order for you to get around 10 lb of dried saffron per season, you have to grow 675,000 Crocus Sativus bulbs. Real saffron is the stigma of the autumn crocus flower. Once the saffron reaches the flowering period, the light exposure can fall to reach 12 14 hours per day. At least 150 flowers are required to make one gram of saffron. Spanish Superior and Crme Saffron: This variety of thread flavor is lower in quality than the other varieties. It is always good to start with a fresh location without any prior cultivation for up to two years. Irrigation demand for saffron farming is relatively low. One acre of hemp can yield around 700 pounds of grain (which can be turned into 22 gallons of oil) or 5,300 pounds of straw which can be turned into fiber. As we said, if a saffron bulb is 15g on average, there are 60 to 80 Crocus Sativus bulbs in 1 kg. When to plant Saffron Crocus in the northern hemisphere * The most popular months to sow Saffron Crocus are Oct, Sep and Nov. Can you share us How to grow saffron in hydroponic system We should transfer bulbs with 10 to 15% of soil and avoid sorting them completely. Saffron plants are sensitive to excess water as it leads to root suffocation. . In other words, the most critical part of our investing is done on buying saffron seeds, and if we dont care about it, our investment will fail soon. Harvesting Basically, planting 600,000 bulbs per hectare is a fair estimate to prepare a planting schedule. This site also participates in other affiliate programs and is compensated for referring traffic and business to these companies. The NFT systems that we are going to use will have around 72 spots per unit. Replant them all as you originally did, 3-4 inches deep and 3-4 inches apart. In Eastern Europe we have seen the bulbs being disinfected using fungicides such as Brassicol or copper sulphide before planting. So lets dive straight into the math. Step 3: To plant, dig a hole 2-4" deep for each bulb. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other. The following details are about Saffron Farming Project Report. Making a significant income growing hydroponic crops has been the dream of many hydroponic enthusiasts worldwide. Scientific / Botanical name of SaffronThe scientific name of domesticated saffron is known as Crocus sativus L. from the family Iridaceae. The Saffron flower is cut at the lower part of its corolla. Imagine hiring people to harvest 675,000 saffron bulbs every 3 months. Hence the production value will increase approximately three times. Required fields are marked *. Each crocus bulb produces only one flower and each flower only produces 3 stigmas. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. Usually the maximum yield occurs in the third year after planting. We know that the big saffron bulbs seller in Asia sells their bulbs with soil, and this is one of the reasons for their high productivity in saffron farms. So, our 675,000 saffron flowers would require around 180 continuous labor hours during the harvest stage. If the temperature falls below this range, the saffron growth rate will be significantly decreased. 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Organic manure such as farmyard manure or compost of about 25 to 30 tonnes per hectare is required. It has been proven that this temperature ends to highly stimulate the saffrons to flower. This means saffron bulbs have lower concentrations, which make saffron bulbs more expensive in some markets. Lightly water the bulbs every other day until the grass-like foliage begins to die back, usually around April. . Saffron (/ s f r n,-r n /) is a spice derived from the flower of Crocus sativus, commonly known as the "saffron crocus".The vivid crimson stigma and styles, called threads, are collected and dried for use mainly as a seasoning and colouring agent in food. As it is a sterile plant, the plants are not found in the wild which requires the planting of saffron bulbs. Bulbs can also be planted in containers, using a good potting compost. As a result, the spice is difficult to harvest and expensive to purchase. Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features. The decomposed farmyard manure is provided for the fields three months before planting. While the myths arouse discord, there's one item of consensus: Kashmiri saffron is the sweetest, most precious spice in the world. My goal is to make HydroponicsSpace.com the go-to resource for newbies to learn everything about hydroponic systems. Renske van Zyl first saw saffron on a visit to Dubai and at first had no idea what it was or about the process of farming saffron. Saffron bulbs trade volume usually is around 10 to 20 tons or more. Each country follows different spacing distance; farmers in Italy plant corms with a spacing of about two to three centimeters and at a depth of about 10 to 15 cm, farmers in Spain plant corms with a row spacing of three centimeters and six-centimeter distance between each corm buried at 10 cm depth, farmers in Greece maintain 25 cm between each row and a 12 cm between each corm buried at 15 cm depth, and farmers in India maintain 15 to 20 cm between rows and corm distance of 8 to 10 cm at a depth of 12 to 15 cm depth. The good practice of farming saffron is in raised beds to improve drainage. Gladioli, Rhizoctonia croccorum and Rhizoctonia violacea Tul, as well as acarina Rhizoglyphus. So, can we grow saffron hydroponically? Apart from selling saffron to many industries, one can start selling the products directly to the end-users through social media and online making huge profits. Fascinated, she began researching how to grow it on her return to South Africa. Made on planet earth. Potted saffron adds a lot of beauty to the home during the autumn season. Planting depth & spacing of Saffron Bulbs (Crocus Sativus) The planting depth of Crocus Sativus is important and has a great impact on the flowering yield. Regards, [emailprotected], I am very serious to take up Saffron cultivation in a non traditional region hence under controlled condition and in verticle manner. Harvesting of flowers should be done before their opening or while still sleeping, doing this way will ensure high-quality saffron stigmas or threads. Every saffron plant can grow up to 4 flowers per spot. In most cases professional Saffron growers prepare the land about one month prior the flowering season of Saffron. To harvest their one acre, it takes four people snipping flowers and filling baskets in the field without losing count then eight more around the table, trimming the saffron filaments away. Place the crocus bulbs with the pointed tip facing upwards in the soil followed by adding more soil over it. The best size for greenhouse saffron cultivation is more than 15g. Typically, 10 to 15% of the weight of saffron bulbs is soil. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance". But there are no special machines available for collecting these. Although the recent advancements of LED grow lights have shown a significant increase in efficiency, they still consume a lot higher electricity when compared to other appliances. The new smaller daughter bulbs will all produce flowers, hence increased yield of Saffron stigmas. Usually, saffron takes 2.5 to 3 months from planting to reaching the harvest stage. So please make sure that everything is well monitored constantly. Other Crocus species multiply from seed. It is unsuitable for tropical areas. Beginner indoor gardening hobbyists do search for simple plant species to grow at the beginning of their indoor gardening journey. As soon as summer starts the leaves dry up and the plant becomes dormant. Thanks, Dried saffron threads are stored immediately in an airtight aluminum box or long neck porcelain jars that are placed in a dark and cool place to avoid bleaching. Can safely take up to a height of about 20 to 35 cm this variety of thread flavor is in... Tent: is it Possible any physical impurities and bulbs of other species expensive two! New bulbs about two to three or even more are formed each season this... Crocus bulb produces only one flower and each flower only produces 3 stigmas stigmas that have to harvest saffron... Sources as efficiently is well monitored constantly to purchase: to plant, dig a hole 2-4 & ;! A planting schedule I can connect with a saffron farmer in Nigeria or any other location per! 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Lower part of our investment gets in danger the production value will increase three. The number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc cookies ensure basic functionalities and features... To 4 flowers per spot to figure out is the marketing aspect you have be. ) labour intensiveness ; ( 2 ) rarity flower is cut at the lower part our!