Crocuses are among the first to bloom in spring. No wonder they are called "spring primroses". It is possible to grow crocuses at home by a certain date. To do this, you need to know the features of the flower and follow the rules. The article will help you learn the secrets of their cultivation and help with the choice of varieties.
Content:
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General information
Crocuses belong to the genus Saffron of the Iris family. This perennial flowersthat reproduce by corms. You can meet them in the wild in the forest, steppe or meadow.
Geographically distributed on the Eurasian continent
The flower got its name for its stigmas. Crocus is a popular name, in the literature it is customary to call it by another name - saffron. In Greek, ‘kroke’ means thread. The second name saffron comes from the Arabic word ‘sepheran’, which means yellow in translation.
Since ancient times, people have used its pistils as a natural dye. In the East, it was popular as a spice. Added to food, it gave a beautiful color and flavor to the dish.
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Crocuses are beautiful and unusual flowers.
Their colors can be both monophonic and variegated. They can be any color. The exception is a pure red tone, there are no such crocuses. Their flowering can last up to 20 days in favorable conditions.
Plant height does not exceed 10 cm. The main feature is the absence of a stem. It does not form, leaves immediately appear from the ground, which have an elongated shape.
Flowers grow singly on low pedicels.. They are shaped like a glass. Their maximum diameter is 5 cm.
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Varieties
Glade of crocuses
Crocuses are divided into 2 groups:
- Botanical (small-flowered)
- Dutch hybrids (large-flowered)
There is also the principle of division by flowering period: spring and autumn. Let's take a closer look at varieties based on it.
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Albus
Albus
- Has white flowers. They bloom at the end of September and fade from the beginning of October.
- It closes at night and on cloudy days. The flowers are about 70 mm in diameter.
Artabir
Artabir
- One of the tallest varieties, grows up to 18 cm.
- Its delicate blue flowers bloom in early October.
Sollux
Sollux
- Blooms in the second half of September. It has light flowers that have a purple-blue tint.
- It exudes a pleasant aroma, which distinguishes it from its counterparts.
Banat
Banat
- Crocus grows up to 30 cm. It blooms with purple or lilac flowers.
- The variety is listed in the Red Book. It is used for decorative purposes.
Beautiful
Beautiful
- It has the largest flowers, up to 12 cm in diameter. Blue-violet flowers with dark veins begin to bloom in September.
- Peduncles grow up to 18 cm, they do not have leaves, as they appear in spring and die off by mid-summer.
Sowing
Sowing
- Grown on an industrial scale. Its pistils are used as a spice for first and second courses. They call it "saffron".
- It has upright leaves with curved tips. They are covered with hairs.
- The plant itself can reach a height of 30 cm.
- Flowers are white and pale purple. Their scent is similar to that of violets.
- Mass flowering lasts about 20 days, but each individual flower blooms for only 3 days.
Pallas undersized
Pallas undersized
- It is never higher than 6 cm. The flowers have a delicate purple color with a pink tint.
- Their diameter is about 4.5 cm. It is distinguished by a long flowering period of up to 30 days.
- You can admire them in September.
Crocus Sharoyana
Sharoyan
- Blooms yellow-orange.
- Its height is 20 cm.
- Dissolves in early August.
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spring crocuses
Alexander
Alexander
- It is distinguished by a silvery tint on the outer side of the petals, and snow-white on the inner side.
- Its flowers bloom in spring.
Crocus yellow
Yellow
- It grows up to 20 cm in height. Golden-orange flowers bloom on its short peduncles of 5–8 cm.
- They bloom in early spring for 20 days. They are quite large, with a diameter of 7 cm.
Crocus Tomasini
tomasini
- Differs in unpretentiousness. The variety has a second name - Neapolitan.
- It blooms in April for 25 days.
- It features a white core and pink-lilac hue of the petals.
- This variety produces many new corms, making it easy to propagate.
Marietta
Marietta
- Another variety that blooms in spring.
- Flower petals are painted yellow, lemon flowers are less common.
- There are brown stripes on the outside.
Grand Meter
Grand Meter
- Blooms up to 10 days. Its flowers are cup-shaped.
- The height of the whole plant is not more than 15 cm.
- It blooms in spring and pleases the eye with rich purple hues.
Pickwick
Pickwick
- Blooms in April-May. It features rounded petals that form a glass-shaped flower.
- Its color is pale purple with a silvery sheen and dark streaks.
- Against this background, a bright orange pistil with stamens looks contrasting.
Prince Claus
Prince Claus
- It differs from other crocuses in amazing flowers that have a charming aroma.
- It has white petals, which are complemented by dark purple strokes from below.
- Flowering period March-April. This variety grows up to 15 cm in height.
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The main thing in growing plants is planting material
You can buy it, grow it yourself or take it from friends, but it must meet the requirement. This is a guarantee of beautiful and healthy flowers.
Corms for planting should be perfect:
- No signs of decay
- No mechanical damage
If the damage is small, they can be repaired. Clean the bulbs and treat the damaged area with ash or activated charcoal, before washing in a weak pinkish solution of potassium permanganate.
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Before planting crocuses, you need to consider the variety and when it blooms
Spring-flowering plants are planted in autumn, and plants that bloom in autumn, on the contrary, are planted in spring.
Selecting a landing site
The choice of location is one of the important conditions
It should be spacious, as crocuses are actively growing. They also love the sun. The territory for planting flowers should be well lit and warmed up by its rays.
Heat stimulates leaf growth, but delicate flower petals are best shaded. In this case, a plot of land with trees is ideal.
The soil
Ideal conditions can be created by enriching the earth with fertilizers, humus and peat mixed with lime. It is also mixed with sand
Ideal soil parameters:
- Nutritious
- Loose and light
- Dry
Creating conditions:
- If the soil is of high humidity, then drainage must be laid under the top layer. Suitable pebbles or expanded clay.
- Wood ash is added to clay soil.
Landing
- To plant crocuses you need to make holes
- Their depth should be about 10 cm
- It is important not to make them very close to each other.
- Maintain a distance of 5 to 10 cm
Crocuses do not grow in waterlogged and acidic soils.
Put a little humus on the bottom of the hole. Cover it with a drainage layer, it can be fine gravel or sand. A corm is laid on top and sprinkled with a loose layer of earth.
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Crocuses do not require complex care
They do not require regular watering. It must be produced if there was no snow in winter and no spring rains. They tolerate drought very well. In dry years, the height of the plant will be slightly less than usual.
Fertilize crocuses several times a year:
- During boarding
- In early spring, after the snow has melted
- During the flowering period
The land in the area with flowers should be regularly weeded and loosened. Even during the dormant period of the plant, which occurs after the cessation of flowering.
They tolerate winter frosts well. It is not necessary to cover the planted bulbs.
Care after flowering
After the flowers wither, it is recommended to cut the flower stalks
The leaves are left. They look decorative on their own. For the health of the bulbs, they need to be allowed to dry out on their own. That's all care. This plant is rightfully considered one of the most unpretentious.
Digging up bulbs
Crocuses need to be dug up every 3-4 years. This will rejuvenate the plant. It will bloom better and multiply more actively.
Digging should be carried out strictly in the middle of summer, during the dormant period
By this time the leaves should be dry.
If desired, corms can be dug up and divided every year. Then you will have more planting material. This will allow you to plant a larger area with flowers.
bulb storage
When the bulbs are dug up, they need to be dried. To do this, lay them out in the shade on the street. After they dry, the remnants of the earth, dry leaves, dead roots are removed. Then, children are separated and sorted by size.
Sorted corms are stacked in one layer and stored in a ventilated area.
For example, you can put it in low boxes and put it under furniture or in a pantry. The temperature is maintained above 22 degrees. If it is lower, flower buds will begin to develop ahead of time.
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Young entrances of crocuses
Crocuses reproduce in two ways:
- bulbs
- seeds
Bulbs make it easy to propagate flowers. The mother bulb gives many children. They form in the axils of the scales.
The mother bulb dies, leaving its offspring. If you dig them out after a few years, the nest will be very dense. They are separated and planted.
This makes it possible to form new colonies of crocus babies. Splitting is allowed every year, depending on your preference.
The seed method is more complicated
They are harvested after the flowering of the plant. Dry for 3 weeks. After sown in the ground. The distance between the seeds should be 3 - 5 cm. They will begin to bloom only three years after planting.
The disadvantage of propagating crocuses by seeds is that they can lose their belonging to the variety. Often they require hybridization. This process is complex and without special skills, it is better not to undertake it.
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Crocuses are resistant to diseases and insect pests. Their main enemy is rodents.. Mice love to gnaw on their bulbs. Especially during drying, care must be taken not to gnaw or spoil the planting material.
It happens that the wireworm attacks the flowers. This is the larva of the click beetle. It has a yellow color and a hard body. They will be scared away by last year's not overgrown grass, straw, spread out over the site.
Colored crocuses
They need to be moistened and covered. The pest will move into these traps. After they are burned along with the larvae. If necessary, the procedure is repeated. It should be carried out in late April - early May.
When growing crocuses, you may encounter self-seeding. Unharvested seeds germinate in the most unexpected places in the garden. They clog him up. Timely cut flower stalks will help to get rid of, or if missed, then weeding.
Crocus in the open field
Mice and aphids can infect crocuses with a disease that causes flattened flowers. Noticing such a flower. It needs to be removed: dig up and destroy. The place where the plant grew is treated with a hot, saturated solution of potassium permanganate.
In warm and damp weather, bulbs can be affected by rot, fungal diseases, fusarium. To avoid them, you need to carefully inspect the seed, especially when buying. When digging, proceed carefully so as not to damage.
If the wound could not be avoided, it must be promptly treated and sprinkled with coal or ash. Before planting, damaged tubers are treated with a fungicide solution.
Forcing crocuses by a specific date
Forcing crocuses by March 8
Crocuses are easy to distill. It is worth planting a few pots in October and setting them up at a certain time, and you will receive a flowering plant by the planned date, for example, March 8th.
Variety selection
In order for the plant to bloom by a certain date, you need to choose suitable varieties
It is better if they are hybrid, large-flowered. Autumn varieties are difficult to bring to flowering for the New Year or Christmas. Spring, on the contrary, is difficult to make flowers bloom by March 8 or May 1.
Preparing for landing
Crocus bulbs
To prepare the dug out bulbs, you need to carry out a number of measures:
- For forcing in January: dug out bulbs in the summer must be kept for 7 days at a temperature of 34 degrees, then 14 days at 20 degrees. Then it decreases until mid-August to 17 degrees. Next, keep at +9 degrees until landing. It is held at the end of September.
- For forcing in spring: after digging and until the beginning of August, the temperature should be 20 degrees, then it is reduced to 17. Landing is carried out in October or early November.
Purchased bulbs should be kept at room temperature for a week before planting, then folded into a paper bag and placed in the refrigerator door for several days.
substrate
Suitable for forcing any soil mixture
Crocuses spend on flowering nutrients accumulated in corms. You can plant in sand, expanded clay, small gravel and even in water. If you plan to reuse the bulbs, then you need to use purchased land for flowers.
Pot selection
The container for forcing crocuses at home should be wide and shallow
There must be a drainage hole at the bottom. You can use containers or flower pots. A container with a diameter of 15 cm can hold 10 corms.
Landing
You can plant different varieties of crocuses in one pot
Step by step boarding process:
- Fill pot with soil.
- Moisten, the soil should settle a little.
- Spread the bulbs on the surface. They need to be pressed into the substrate a little. They should be stacked quite tightly, but not in contact with each other and the walls of the planting container.
- Top with soil and water. It is not recommended to seal the top layer.
They must match the growing season. This will ensure simultaneous flowering.
Cooling
Planted crocuses need to be covered and placed in a cold place.
The temperature should be positive, but not exceed 9 degrees. Suitable for this refrigerator or cellar. Cooling should be 3 - 4 months. This process stimulates rooting, which promotes the opening of flowers at the right time.
Bloom
Planted crocuses need to be covered and placed in a cold place.
When it's time to take out the pots and remove the lids. Crocuses need to be watered and put in a cool room. After a few days, green leaves will begin to appear. Soon they will bloom their flowers.
Criteria for the readiness of crocuses for flowering:
- Sprouts should grow at least 5 cm. This is the weakest of all.
- It should be tight to the touch.. An empty sprout is not ready to release leaves.
- The roots of the plant should come out of the drainage hole at the bottom of the pot..
So, the criteria are met, it's time to exhibit flowers. You need to put them on the windowsill, ensuring the flow of light. The room temperature should not exceed +15 degrees.
Crocuses at elevated temperatures will immediately react and release leaves and bloom. Under very warm conditions, they will fade very quickly. If it is very hot, the process may take only a few hours.
If you want to re-plant corms, you need to leave them in the room. Water occasionally until the leaves turn yellow. They keep until planting in the ground in autumn. They cannot be re-used for forcing.
Buying bulbs
When choosing planting material, it must be carefully examined. Healthy bulbs are the key to strong sprouts and beautiful flowers.
There are symbols on the packaging from Dutch manufacturers, by which you can determine how many flowers will bloom. When marked +10, the bulb will produce 5-6 flower stalks. If the mark is lower, then the quantity is reduced to 3 - 4 pieces.
Size matters. The larger the corm, the larger the flowers and plant growth will be. In selected crocuses, the diameter can reach 7 cm.
Medicinal properties of crocuses
Crocuses, in addition to beauty, have useful qualities.
Even Ibn Sina wrote about crocuses as an astringent.
Recommended to use these:
- When fighting tumors
- To improve the appearance of the skin
- As a sedative
- To strengthen the cardiovascular system
- For the treatment of stomach diseases
In modern times, saffron is used as an anesthetic. Lotions are applied to a sore head or to an inflamed ear.
Saffron promotes the production of the hormone of happiness, serotonin.Thanks to this, it helps to fight apathy, depression and insomnia.
Crocus has antiseptic and anti-inflammatory properties. Its decoction is used to wash wounds.
It has an antitussive effect. With inflammation of the tonsils, it is recommended to gargle with tincture.
Saffron is the strongest natural aphrodisiac. With its help, problems with male potency are treated.
Contraindications
When preparing dishes with it, you must strictly observe the proportions
Unlimited consumption of saffron is contraindicated. Consumption rate - 1 gr. for 1 year. This is about 400 of his hairs.
It is forbidden to use the following categories of people:
- Pregnant
- For nursing mothers
- Small children, up to 2 years old
- Hypertension patients
- Diabetics
- For heart disease
