It is a very common question when someone wants to start in the saffron crop , it is normal that doubts arise as it is a type of crop that has a life cycle very different from most plants.
The saffron that we all know to give color, flavor and aroma (among other things) in gastronomy you get a flower, which within its particularities , it turns out that it is autumn, the bloom is given from October (can start on any day of October, there are years beginning on day 5 and other years has begun on the 20, this depends on the climatic conditions of each year), indicated the time of the beginning of flowering because it is necessary to bear in mind that before blossoming it has been germinating in the ground for a month.
So if you want to plant to have your own saffron, you have to take into account various factors. Or if you prefer to buy saffron easy and how, we give you the possibility
It is important that the bulbs are planted before September 10 , always before they start to germinate "the grillones" because at that moment the bulb has a great expense of energy and needs to be nourished by a well-fertilized land suitable for its development.
Since the month of June you can already plant, the bulb is extracted from the ground for the end de Mayo, after the extraction we proceed to clean the bulb , this task consists in separating the bulbs since from the ground they come out in ears of 7-9 bulbs united so that remains of the mother bulb, to each bulb it is necessary to remove the culote (it is a dry part that could hinder the birth of the new root), you also have to remove the layers of leftover skin so that only one remains as a protection of the bulb, these remains are called "farfolla" and the cleaning process " Esfarfollar ", it is also convenient to select the bulb by size, it is usually done by the diameter of the base separating them into two categories, large and small, the differential point of each size is in the 2,5ctm diameter base.
Once the b ulbo is clean is stored in a place where no sunlight directly and that this cool, these conditions are important for the bulb to dry out of the moisture with which it leaves the soil and thus ensure its conservation without producing any type of fungus, you have to store it well aired because if left too crowded it can have putrefaction problems.
Unfortunately there are" people "who offer bulbs out of season, you have to to end it, this is a bad commercial practice in which they assure that the bulb is good and that it does not matter if it is grilled, that it is going to give flowers equal, if it is true that the flower gives it even if it is not on the ground as it should be, the bulb continues its cycle producing the flower that has inside from the month of March, but having no source to nurture the bulb will end dying without having the option to keep giving flowers and reproducing in the following campaigns. From Azafranes Jiloca advise that planting be carried out in June-July that later because the bulb loses water and weight every day that is out of the earth and this translates into less flowering the first year of cultivation .
If the bulb is extracted dry and comes from dry fields there is usually no problem, if it comes from irrigated fields and extract it by adding water so that the extraction is smoother the bulb is much more humid and can generate infection of fungi in its storage, this can be checked by checking the bulbs before purchasing them, because if you "peel" any one randomly you can see if they have black or orange marks that indicate possible infections, you also have to check that the bulb is free of bumps, these are usually generated if the extraction is done with a machine since to remove the excess ground is subjected to a strong vibration that produces bumps and these they can degenerate into putrefac bulb.
From before they begin to be born the bulb needs to be nourished for its good development, if they are born and the bulb is not planted, the bulb may die in the following months.
bulb is very sensitive to moisture and a soil that does not drain well rainwater or irrigation can be fatal for saffron bulbs, you must also take care to add a suitable fertilizer for the plant, perfect cow and horse manure , the one of sheep also works well, that if, it is convenient that this well fermented to avoid a great proliferation of weeds throughout the year.
When the bulb is planted it is advisable to put it in rows with a distance of 10c tm between each bulb, and minimum 15ctm of separation between each furrow, this indication is so that the bulb has room to develop and multiply under conditions without lack of food.
