Hundreds of purple crocus flowers were making their first appearance when I visited the Münster Botanical Gardens on a chilly March morning. This sign of Springtime lightens hearts in Germany. The sweet blooms signal an end to the grey winter blahs. But these are only half of the story of crocuses in Germany. Although there are a few different crocus varieties that bloom in the Fall, the most important might be the Saffron Crocus. These delicate purple flowers produce the world’s most expensive spice. These two beautiful different species of crocus open and close the flower gardening season.
Springtime Crocuses in Germany
You’ll find the Springtime Crocus popping up in fields all over Germany. These beautiful flowers spring from bulbs and create a carpet of purple. They symbolize rebirth and new beginnings.
Although they were lovely in Münster, the most impressive fields of Springtime Crocuses are found in the Husum Schlossgarten. But how did they get there? Was it the 15th-century monks hoping for a dye for religious vestments? Or was it Duchess Marie Elizabeth (1655- 1684), looking for saffron to flavor confectionary? Sadly, if it was saffron they were looking for, they planted the wrong Crocus. The spring Crocus, crocus vernus, doesn’t produce saffron… in fact, it’s poisonous.
What they wanted was the Saffron Crocus, crocus sativus.
Saffron Crocuses in Germany
Maybe you know this rhyme?
Backe Backe Kuchen
Backe, backe Kuchen,
Der Bäcker hat gerufen!
Wer will gute Kuchen backen,
Der muss haben sieben Sachen:
Eier und Schmalz,
Butter und Salz,
Milch und Mehl,
Safran macht den Kuchen gel’ (gelb)
Bake, bake a cake
The baker has called!
He who wants to bake good cakes
Must have seven things:
Eggs and lard,
Butter and salt,
Milk and flour,
Saffron makes the cake yellow
The original rhyme goes back to 1460. In the recipe collection of Meister Hans, court chef in Württemberg, you’ll find the list… but instead of Kuchen (cake) he calls it Mus (porridge).
Wer ein gut mus will haben dasmach von sibennler sachn du must haben milich,salcz, und shmalcz, sugker, ayer, und mel saffran dar zue so wirt es gell.
Who wants to have a good sidedish should make it from seven things: you have to have milk, salt, and lard, sugar, eggs and flour, with saffron added, thus it becomes yellow. (p.87 Beyond Bratwurst- Ursula Heinzelmann)
Saffron Crocus is known as Safran in Germany
Saffron gets its first mention in a German pharmacopeia around 1150. This saffron was imported from Greece and Spain at high cost. Saffron was, and still is the most expensive spice, used in food, dye, and medicine. (In the 12th and 13th centuries, wealthy merchants sometimes used saffron in place of money). Mostly we think of Saffron as part of Spanish or Middle Eastern cooking, but you’ll find Saffron in German food and healing traditions dating back to the 12th century. It was added spiced wine (Claret), it was worn in a pouch around the neck to keep away the Black Death, and it was added to baked goods for color and flavor.
In the 1420s, the city of Nürnberg opened a Saffron Fair for trading saffron. To prevent fraud, strict regulations were put in place. Monitors would burn the fake saffron, along with the person selling the counterfeit.
The 15th century also saw Saffron Crocuses, crocus sativus, planted in Germany and Switzerland. Primarily in the areas of the Palatinate near Dresden, in Thuringia, Brandenburg, and Baden Wurttemberg. You’ll also find it in the Swiss Alps, and the Wachau region near Vienna. According to Leonhard Fuchs, in his 1543 Kreutterbuch “Right now the German Austrian saffron that grows around the city of Vienna is more expensive than that from the Orient…” (p.87 Beyond Bratwurst)
A very small amount goes a LONG way… but harvesting the spice requires a lot of hand labor.
BOTANICAL PRINT Kohler 8×10 Botanical Art Print 54 Beautiful Pink Crocus Meadow Saffron
In the Middle Ages families supplemented their income by harvesting Saffron. Saffron Crocuses in Germany bloom in October, coincidentally at the end of the harvest season. During those two weeks, families would gather as many flowers as possible, then they would spend evenings sitting around the table carefully gathering those precious threads of saffron for sale. (Every bit was precious, but almost certainly, a very small amount would end up in the cake or the sauce.)
The saffron comes from the three orange stigmas on top of the pistols in the center of the purple crocus bloom. It takes approximately 150 Crocus Sativa flowers to make 1 gram of saffron and 150,000 to 200,000 flowers to make 1 kilogram. To give that some perspective, the Valais region of Switzerland produces 4 kilograms a year. (For anyone considering a career in saffron cultivation, a kilo of saffron sells for around 17,000 €)
Even today, this “Red Gold” is all harvested by hand.
Saffron Uses
In cooking, saffron adds flavor, and beautiful yellow color to dishes. White foods were, in some periods, considered “Nursery Foods” or foods for anyone unwell. Adding a touch of color added brightness to dishes. Cakes, breads, and other baked goods improved with a pinch of saffron… as did sauces.
As a medicinal, saffron was thought to be “dry and hot” … adding it to a fish dish would balance the “cold and damp” nature of the fish, making it easier on digestion. Saffron would also be added to medicine pouches around the neck to ward off the plague. A poultice of saffron would treat bruises. Today, saffron is still considered medicinal, and being tested for use against depression and “baby blues”
Saffron Comes to America
Saffron crocuses traveled with Germans to the British American Colonies, where it was (and still is) a staple in Pennsylvania Dutch cooking. These important plants were part of most carefully tended PA German Kitchen Gardens. Saffron ended up in delicious recipes for Stewed Chicken and Dumplings and Chicken Corn soup. Any surplus could be sold as a money crop.
Growing Crocuses
You can plant Spring Crocus corms in all sorts of conditions… in lawns, under trees, even along the coast. Do be careful, although they are lovely, they are toxic to pets. Here is a crocus planting guide.
Order them here- Springtime Crocus
The old saying goes Saffron Crocuses grow where wine grows. The bulbs like loose, well-drained soil and sunshine. Read more about planting them here.
You can order them here- Saffron Crocus
20 Large Saffron Crocus Sativus Corms – Freshly Harvested in CaliforniaVotaniki Giant Crocus Mix Bulbs – Perennial Crocus for Assorted Colors | Long Lasting Blooms – Easy to Grow Crocus
Blue Moon Crocus Bulbs for Planting (100 Bulbs)
10 Sativus Crocus Corms – Instructions Will be Included
Crocuses, a double delight
In springtime, beautiful Crocuses let us know that Springtime has arrived… and those lovely Fall Saffron Crocuses mark the end of the flowering season in Germany.
References
Beyond Bratwurst: A History of Food in Germany by Ursula Heinzelmann
https://www.bauernzeitung.ch/artikel/landleben/krokus-und-safran-364879
https://www.husum-tourismus.de/Reisefuehrer/Typisch-Husum/Krokusbluete
https://www.husum-tourismus.de/Reisefuehrer/Typisch-Husum/Krokusbluete/Geschichte
https://thehistoricfoodie.wordpress.com/2013/08/14/saffron-a-pennsylvania-dutch-essential/
https://www.thespruce.com/planting-and-caring-for-crocus-1402246
Lovely article! Unfortunately, spring crocuses are not poisonous to the white tailed deer here in the United States. They love to devour the green shoots, preventing the bulbs from gaining nutrients for the next season. But, we keep trying!
oh no! I hear that deer can be real garden pests… we just deal with raccoons and underground creatures here