33 responses |
About the Author MNash1 Terranora Northern NSW 28th February 2010 5:09pm #UserID: 2892 Posts: 292 View All MNash1's Edible Fruit Trees |
|||||||
John Mc says... Hey there M Nash, I bought 20 odd Saffron corms from this ebayer: inthelonggrass@bigpond.com If you're quick she might have some left. I had to buy a second lot because the rats ate every one of my first lot of corms. From memory they were around $30 for 20 corms delivered, something like that. | About the Author John Mc1 Warnervale NSW 28th February 2010 6:35pm #UserID: 3373 Posts: 72 View All John Mc1's Edible Fruit Trees |
||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Reply |
| Remember to
LIKE this Answer(0)
LIKE this Question (0)
Original Post was last edited: 28th February 2010 6:38pm | |||||||
Diana says... Hi M Nash, You can buy saffron corms via the web from Green Harvest http://greenharvest.com.au/Plants/rare_food_plant_index.html> or Diggers. They say that this plant needs a dry mediterranean climate, and will not do well in northern NSW/ South east Qld coastal areas. Diana. | About the Author Brisbane 28th February 2010 6:47pm #UserID: 0 Posts: View All 's Edible Fruit Trees |
||||||
About the Author MNash1 Terranora Northern NSW 28th February 2010 7:32pm #UserID: 2892 Posts: 292 View All MNash1's Edible Fruit Trees |
|||||||
c taylor says... I planted 10 bulbs in jan/feb in a large pot & today my 1st 2 flowers opened for me. Central Coast NSW but my block is in a hollow behind a highish street behind me, making like a sub tropical rainforest area. I used a large pot, rather than the ground, as I am old & no longer good for bending etc. No problems with native varmits as yet! And yes they do visit me, all varieties from the park across the road! Try using the pot idea to stop the critters from eating bulbs, also then you can put the pot(s), where they get the weather they like! Too hot - move 'em easy as! Have fun in the garden! Have attached a pic taken around midday today!
| About the Author c taylor Kanwal NSW 17th April 2010 1:17pm #UserID: 3214 Posts: 3 View All c taylor's Edible Fruit Trees |
||||||
About the Author MNash1 Terranora Northern NSW 17th April 2010 4:41pm #UserID: 2892 Posts: 292 View All MNash1's Edible Fruit Trees |
|||||||
Evo says... Mine have just emerged from the earth after the last couple of frosty nights. If you are planting now you may miss the flowering as I did last year. Yes. They are a wispy grassy looking thing. Very uninspiring...until they flower! My are also in a pot so I can bring them inside during flowering so the wind doesn't steal my crop! :> | About the Author lionfish 17th April 2010 7:39pm #UserID: 349 Posts: 35 View All lionfish's Edible Fruit Trees |
||||||
About the Author John Mc 18th April 2010 8:14pm #UserID: 3496 Posts: 132 View All John Mc's Edible Fruit Trees |
|||||||
Speedy says... They could still flower John Mc, depends on when you planted them. I planted mine a couple of weeks ago (a bit later than I'd planned but not as late as some last year). In NNSW/SEQ they could be ok if grown in a very well drained mix. You'd probably have to lift them at the end of the growing season so they dont rot in the ground during dormancy over summer. I guess they could be grown in a styrofoam box or a planter and shifted under the eaves of the house during summer dormancy.
| About the Author Speedy Nth. Vic. 18th April 2010 10:17pm #UserID: 2305 Posts: 250 View All Speedy's Edible Fruit Trees |
||||||
About the Author Charlesstillcantspell1 Perth Innaloo 19th April 2010 12:05am #UserID: 2742 Posts: 411 View All Charlesstillcantspell1's Edible Fruit Trees |
|||||||
John Mc says... Yes speedy, I planted mine out about a month ago. Fingers crossed I get a flower or two. I might have to adjust the potting mix I made up for them for next year. Anything I grow in pots I grow in a soiless mix. I can tailor make it to hold water or drain very quickly. It's basically ph neutral flyash for the drainage and cocopeat for moisture retention. It depends on what I'm potting up determines on the ratio of flyash to cocopeat. Some mixes are 100% flyash and some are 100% cocopeat, Most plants are a mix of both. For the Saffron bulbs, I made up a 50/50 mix. I will revise that next year and go 100% flyash, I'm thinking for pure drainage. | About the Author John Mc 19th April 2010 12:29am #UserID: 3496 Posts: 132 View All John Mc's Edible Fruit Trees |
||||||
Speedy says... Thanks Charles cs , I'll take that as a compliment. I dunno about the phone camera though , my hands look really very clean there, like ive washed them or something. John, my soil is not really very well drained. I think that in Vic. where we get rain (if we get it) mostly in the winter the Crocuses are growing and it's not much of a problem for them. It may be a problem in SE Qld during the wet and humidity of summer though, but a good potting mix should be ok. I may have over emphasized it a bit before when I said 'very well drained' mix. What you have them in now looks ok. | About the Author Speedy Nth. Vic. 19th April 2010 12:52am #UserID: 2305 Posts: 250 View All Speedy's Edible Fruit Trees |
||||||
c taylor says... I have now had 10 flowers from my 11 bulbs. Funny thing is 2 bulbs have produced none & one had 2 heads at once, 2 have repeat flowered, within a day or 2! A chef friend of mine, knew what the freshly picked strands were the second he saw them. Was very excited to see freshly picked saffron!. When you pick the flowers, I find if you remove 1 petal, then find where the base of the threads are, & take the whole piece in 1, then you don't have 3 threads trying to fall & get lost, from where ever you are drying them. Here is a link for a website with harvesting info, quantities are fascinating. 20 threads equals a PINCH of saffron mind you!!! http://www.gourmetsleuth.com/Articles/Exotic-Herbs-Spices-and-Salts-639/saffron.aspx#5min Take care with snails slugs & caterpillars.I found 1 flower yesterday all but consumed, only had 1 thread left on it. Today I picked the seemingly last 1, as an unopened bud. Cloudy day no sunshine so the bud stayed closed!I pulled a petal off & removed the whole thread system safely! Perhaps harvesting nearly opened buds is a better proposition than risking the critters getting to them! Just took the pics for this forum, 1st one is the freshly picked strands from today's bud, the other pic is no my whole harvest, minus the 3 thread set I gave to the friend!! Easy to see why they need 10,000 flowers to get 1lb of saffron Ha! Ha! Have fun guys!
| About the Author c taylor central coast nsw 25th April 2010 1:17pm #UserID: 3214 Posts: 3 View All c taylor's Edible Fruit Trees |
||||||
Steven says... Hey everyone I was at the nursery today and by chance i noticed they were selling saffron in pots. so i thought what the hey and bought one. ive never really tried saffron properly before and never thought about growing it before so i dont know much about it. I did a quick search on the internet and didnt find much about when to grow it and how to look after it. At the moment its growing in a pot with threads about 20cm long, can i just plant it in the ground with a little fertilizer and let it grow wild? should i plant it in summer in the vegetable garden? whats the best way to grow and care for saffron? Thanks Steven | About the Author Steven Eastern Melbourne 21st July 2010 10:38am #UserID: 704 Posts: 325 View All Steven's Edible Fruit Trees |
||||||
JUJUBE FOR SALE IN MELBOURNE says... Hi Steven, You may be interested in these links: http://www.easytogrowbulbs.com/index.asp?PageAction=Custom&ID=98 http://www.gardenexpress.com.au/growing_guide/crocus_saffron/crocus_saffron.html Happy growing | About the Author JUJUBE FOR SALE Melbourne 21st July 2010 11:43am #UserID: 2706 Posts: 715 View All JUJUBE FOR SALE's Edible Fruit Trees |
||||||
Speedy says... I plant in Feb-March and they're up in march-april and flowering soon after. the leaves die off about oct-nov and are dormant over summer. If you want to grow it for use in the kitchen, best value for money is if you get dormant bulbs and plant them out. $50 worth would be a good start (eqivalent of about 4 vials of Aust. saffron). you should get that much back in about say, 5yrs (depending on climate and how well you grow them) and then your ahead from then on. If you did go that way, it might be best to place an order with a bulb seller before Nov. when they lift them and start selling them. | About the Author Nth Vic. 21st July 2010 4:11pm #UserID: 0 Posts: View All 's Edible Fruit Trees |
||||||
About the Author Steven Eastern Melbourne 22nd July 2010 10:03am #UserID: 704 Posts: 325 View All Steven's Edible Fruit Trees |
|||||||
Brendan says... Saw a cooking show on tv last week, they said that Saffron likes to grow in a Mediterranean climate (as Diana says above), silly question: Why do they grow it in Tasmania? My dictionary describes a mediterranean climate has hot summers and warm winters. I didn't think Tassie had that type of climate? | About the Author Brendan Mackay, Q 18th October 2010 8:06am #UserID: 1947 Posts: 1722 View All Brendan's Edible Fruit Trees |
||||||
Jason says... Well Tasmania has very warm winters compared to almost all of Europe (everywhere but the very South of Europe) and hot Summers also so thats fair enough. Even on a little island isolated from the mainland the potential Maximum Temperature in Hobart is higher than Mackay during Summer. That's just the way it goes with the very long days at high latitudes when you are underneath a hot desert. Saffron is easy to grow here also, same climate as Tasmania pretty much with a little more heat in Summer | About the Author Jason10 Portland 18th October 2010 11:04am #UserID: 3853 Posts: 218 View All Jason10's Edible Fruit Trees |
||||||
Reply |
| Remember to
LIKE this Answer(0)
LIKE this Question (0)
Original Post was last edited: 18th October 2010 11:09am | |||||||
c taylor says... I use the cheapest potting mix and if my plants like a well drained home I add riversand. NEVER SEASAND! Riversand has minerals etc and it does wonder. The Aussie plants love it. I also use it to make up sandier mixes for growing cacti and succulents, say 50/50. Natives I use 2/5 riversand to potting mix, other plants 1/4. Only foods my plants get are the sugarcane mulch breaking down & if they are lucky some worm farm liquid! Feel free to contact me if you wish dabtcat2@gmail.com | About the Author c taylor kanwal nsw 6th November 2010 12:37pm #UserID: 3214 Posts: 3 View All c taylor's Edible Fruit Trees |
||||||
jacqui says... hellow, i live in s.a and have just been given a dozen saffron bulbs. I lived in the dubbo area where saffron thistle grew and thought that was where saffron came from untill i was given these bulbs. This is the first timei have grown them so iam not sure what you are up against.I remember crocus flower growing when i was younger in the u.k and saffron is a crocus bulb/flower.If the thistle is usable,i dont know.I would like to know more myself. please keep in touch and let me know how you go. my bulbs are starting to shoot at the moment. :) | About the Author jacqui3 s.a country 10th June 2011 9:29pm #UserID: 5413 Posts: 1 View All jacqui3's Edible Fruit Trees |
||||||
About the Author Fremantle 13th June 2011 11:50am #UserID: 0 Posts: View All 's Edible Fruit Trees |
|||||||
About the Author JK Perth 13th June 2011 5:35pm #UserID: 4152 Posts: 57 View All JK's Edible Fruit Trees |
|||||||
About the Author Fremantle 15th June 2011 12:41pm #UserID: 0 Posts: View All 's Edible Fruit Trees |
|||||||
Reply | Edit |
| Remember to
LIKE this Answer(0)
LIKE this Question (1)
People who Like this Question kim14 | |||||||
Steven says... Hey everyone saffron, like bananas is a mutation that doesnt produce any seeds. which for some reason results in the the flowers producing the stamens that is what saffron is. Thats why you need to grow them using the corms as you would garlic. But if they are healthy they can produce quite a few of them. Also to prevent them from rotting you should take them out of the pot during the summer months when the plant is dormant Steven | About the Author Steven Eastern Melbourne 16th June 2011 6:08pm #UserID: 704 Posts: 325 View All Steven's Edible Fruit Trees |
||||||
About the Author Fremantle 17th June 2011 11:07am #UserID: 0 Posts: View All 's Edible Fruit Trees |
|||||||
About the Author Brendan Mackay, Q 21st June 2011 8:11am #UserID: 1947 Posts: 1722 View All Brendan's Edible Fruit Trees |
|||||||
Steven says... Hey Haakon, it was to my understanding that saffron wont produce any seeds at all. the stamens dont make pollen. If thats true then you would most likely be growing the wrong variety. Look it up on the net just in case im wrong but im pretty sure thats the case. It grows naturally on one of the Greek islands and made its way around the world from there via human hands. The reason they die off in summer is because it can get very dry during those times. But all in all Greeces climate is quite similar to most parts of Australia so I wouldnt worry too much about climate. From the looks of it, its basically a weed and will grow relativelty easily. | About the Author Steven Eastern Melbourne 21st June 2011 11:33am #UserID: 704 Posts: 325 View All Steven's Edible Fruit Trees |
||||||
avidgardener says... Hi, I'm from Melbourne. I've had some saffron bulbs growing in a terracotta pot for about 3-4 years but I've never seen any flowers so far. They have multiplied in numbers though. The grassy leaves have come out and they are about 5-7cm high. The pot has been on the north facing deck near a brick wall throughout summer and it's been getting a lot of rain in the past couple of weeks. What should I do to encourage flowering? Thnx in advance... | About the Author avidgardener Lyndhurst 23rd May 2013 4:27pm #UserID: 8015 Posts: 2 View All avidgardener's Edible Fruit Trees |
||||||
Reply |
| Remember to
LIKE this Answer(0)
LIKE this Question (0)
Original Post was last edited: 30th May 2013 3:20pm | |||||||
snottiegobble says... Strange, I bought 20 bulbs from Diggers around Xmas, kept them in their packets until end of march then planted them out in sandy soil with a little added horse manure dug well in, full sun. They all sprouted & 4 of them produced flowers since end of April! Three plants succumbed to bulb rot. but the others are going great guns & starting to multiply. I wasnt expecting any flowers until Spring! | About the Author snottiegobble South of Bunbury 30th May 2013 12:45pm #UserID: 3468 Posts: 1458 View All snottiegobble's Edible Fruit Trees |
||||||
About the Author avidgardener Lyndhurst 14th June 2013 2:10pm #UserID: 8015 Posts: 2 View All avidgardener's Edible Fruit Trees |
|||||||
About the Author Love Veggies Cincinnati 6th November 2015 6:49am #UserID: 12682 Posts: 1 View All Love Veggies's Edible Fruit Trees |
|||||||
About the Author Markmelb MOUNT WAVERLEY,3149,VIC 6th November 2015 9:05am #UserID: 7785 Posts: 1192 View All Markmelb's Edible Fruit Trees |
|||||||
About the Author Fouzia Qureshi Vermont, Victoria 12th April 2019 10:43pm #UserID: 20112 Posts: 1 View All Fouzia Qureshi's Edible Fruit Trees |
|||||||