In short
- Flowers in autumn (Sep–Oct) leafless — the broad leaves appear only in spring.
- Has six stamens, which distinguishes it from the similar crocus (three stamens).
- Highly poisonous — colchicine, no antidote; all parts are toxic, including the seeds and tuber.
- The tubers are planted in summer (July–August), during dormancy, at a depth of about 10 cm.
- This is not saffron — 'meadow saffron' is a misleading name; the spice comes from the cultivated crocus (Crocus sativus).
Botanical data
- Family
- Colchicaceae (Colchicaceae)
- Height
- 0.1–0.4 m
- Width
- 0.1–0.15 m
- Habit
- Upright
- Growth rate
- Moderate
- Position
- Full sun, Partial shade
- Soil
- Humus-rich, Loamy
- pH reaction
- pH 6–7.5
- Moisture
- Moderate, Moist
- Bloom
- September–October
- Hardiness
- USDA 4a–8b
- Propagation
- From bulbs / tubers, By division, From seed
Characteristics
Autumn crocus is a geophyte — a perennating plant that produces an underground tuber (corm) in which it stores reserves for flowering and growth. Its most striking feature is an unusual developmental cycle: in autumn, in September and October, single flowers or clusters of several rise straight from the ground, completely devoid of leaves — hence the English name 'naked ladies'. The flower has six pink-lilac (more rarely white) tepals, fused at the base into a very long, whitish tube reaching all the way down to the tuber hidden a dozen or so centimetres below the soil surface; what we take for a stem is in fact this elongated perianth tube. The flower contains six stamens and a pistil with a three-parted stigma, while the ovary stays underground — only in spring is it carried upward together with the leaves. It is precisely the number of stamens that is the simplest feature distinguishing autumn crocus from the deceptively similar crocus, which has three. The leaves — broadly lanceolate, dark green and glossy — appear only in early spring, together with the ripening seed capsule, reach 25–40 cm and wither at the beginning of summer, after which the plant enters its summer dormancy. The flowers themselves rise to 10–15 cm. The best position is sunny to lightly shaded, with fertile, humus-rich and well-drained soil, although in the wild the species grows in moist meadows and open woodland.
Popular cultivars
- ‘Album’
- A form with pure white flowers instead of the typical pink-lilac. Apart from colour it does not differ from the species — it flowers in autumn leafless and is equally poisonous.
- ‘Pleniflorum’
- A cultivar with double flowers, bearing numerous lilac-pink tepals. The flowers are heavier and last longer in the border than those of the single form.
Growing and care
Watering
The tuber is dormant in summer, so it needs no watering — it requires moisture in autumn during flowering and in spring, when the leaves grow. Waterlogged soil encourages the tubers to rot.
0Fertilizing
Minimal — on fertile, humus-rich soil, fertilising is usually unnecessary.
Planting
Fertile, well-drained soil; on heavy, waterlogged sites the tubers rot — adding sand and choosing a spot without standing water helps.
Pruning
Remove the withered leaves and ripe seed capsules.
Companion plants
Good companions
Zasłaniają bezlistne jesienne kwiaty oraz mało dekoracyjne, żółknące wiosną liście zimowitu, dając im naturalne tło.
Zimowit dobrze zadomawia się w niekoszonej wczesną jesienią trawie, tworząc z czasem kwietne kobierce.
Bad companions
Letni spoczynek bulw wypada w porze prac, które łatwo je uszkadzają lub wykopują.
The evidence level indicates whether the relationship is backed by research, observation, or gardening tradition.
Diseases and pests
A grey-brown, fluffy coating of mycelium on flowers, fruit, leaves and shoots, preceded by watery, rotting spots. It attacks weakened and damaged tissue and develops rapidly in humidity and cool conditions and where air circulation is poor. Common on strawberries, begonias, peonies and roses. The coating is characteristically 'mousy' — fluffy and ashy grey, and when the infected tissue is knocked a visible cloud of spores (conidia) puffs up, which is a diagnostic feature of this disease. Infection usually starts in the weakest tissues: fading petals, wounds, hail marks or pest feeding damage, as well as pollen residue settled on the petals. Small, brown, watery spots appear on the flowers and quickly engulf the whole bloom ('flower blight'); from the infected flower the fungus often grows down into the shoot, causing it to constrict and die back. On soft fruit (strawberry, raspberry, grapes, tomato) a watery, browning rot develops, covered with a thick layer of grey, fluffy felt — the berry softens and 'dissolves'. On seedlings and cuttings Botrytis causes basal stem rot and the sudden collapse of plants. In older, dying mycelium and on plant debris hard, black, irregular lumps form — sclerotia (resting bodies), by which the pathogen overwinters in the soil and in plant debris. The disease also shows up after harvest, as a rapidly advancing storage rot of fruit and vegetables.
Slugs and snailsSlugs and shelled snails that feed at night and after rain. Symptoms: irregular holes in the leaves and young seedlings eaten off completely, silvery slime trails on leaves and soil. The greatest damage occurs in damp, shaded spots — particularly on lettuce, strawberries and hostas. The most damaging in gardens are the slugs (which lack an external shell): the Spanish slug (Arion vulgaris, formerly described as A. lusitanicus) and the grey field slug (Deroceras reticulatum). The leopard slug (Limax maximus) can be morphologically similar to them, but it feeds mainly on decaying organic matter and fungi and may even prey on other slugs, so it is of little importance as a pest of living plants. Shelled forms — grove snails (Cepaea) or the protected Roman snail (Helix pomatia) — usually cause less damage. The body is soft, elongated and permanently covered in slime; on the head there are two pairs of retractable tentacles — the longer upper pair bears the eyes, the shorter lower pair serves a tactile and olfactory function. Slugs and snails are hermaphrodites: they lay spherical, transparent or pearly eggs in clusters, hidden in damp soil, under stones and in leaf litter. A single Spanish slug can lay several hundred eggs; both eggs and young slugs overwinter, and feeding lasts from spring to late autumn, intensifying on warm, damp nights. The damage has smooth edges and often appears in the middle of the leaf blade, not only from the margin; seedlings and transplants are sometimes eaten down to bare soil, and on strawberries and ripening vegetables the slugs gnaw hollows into the fruit. The decisive diagnostic sign is the dried, silvery glistening slime trail — no insect leaves one.
Toxicity
| For whom | Level | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Humans | Lethal | All parts, including the tuber and seeds, contain colchicine. The poisoning has no known antidote; the symptoms resemble arsenic poisoning and appear after a delay of several hours. Fatal poisonings have been recorded after mistaking the leaves for wild garlic and the flowers for saffron. |
| Horses | High | Colchicine remains toxic in dried hay — autumn crocus in hay meadows can be dangerous to cattle and horses. |
| Dogs | High | — |
History and origin
The folk and trade names of autumn crocus can be misleading. The term 'meadow saffron' suggests kinship with saffron — yet the true spice is obtained from the stigmas of the cultivated crocus (Crocus sativus), while autumn crocus belongs to an entirely different family and is highly poisonous; confusing the two plants has proved fatal. The whole plant contains colchicine, an alkaloid isolated in 1820 by the French chemists Pierre Joseph Pelletier and Joseph Bienaimé Caventou. Colchicine has no known antidote, and the symptoms of poisoning — burning in the throat, vomiting, diarrhoea, multi-organ damage — resemble arsenic poisoning and appear after a delay of several hours. Despite this, extracts of autumn crocus have been used in medicine since antiquity to treat gout, and purified colchicine remains to this day a drug for gout and familial Mediterranean fever — in strictly controlled, minute doses, only under a physician's supervision. Colchicine's second, quite different career is in plant breeding: since the 1930s its ability to double the number of chromosomes and produce polyploid forms has been exploited. In hay meadows autumn crocus was long the bane of livestock keepers — colchicine is stable and remains toxic even in dried hay.
Uses
In the garden autumn crocus is valued for flowering at a time when most perennials have already finished blooming. It is planted in groups in borders, in rock gardens, beneath deciduous shrubs and for naturalising in lawns and flower meadows, where over time it forms colourful carpets. The tubers are planted in summer, during dormancy (July–August), at a depth of about 10 cm and 10–15 cm apart; set among low ground-covering perennials or in grass they gain a natural backdrop that masks the leafless flowers and the not-very-decorative leaves that yellow in spring. A well-known curiosity is 'dry flowering': a tuber placed on a windowsill in autumn, without soil or water, sends up flowers all the same — after blooming, however, it must be planted into the ground as soon as possible. Autumn crocus rarely falls ill and is practically untouched by rodents and deer, which avoid the poisonous tubers; the leaves, however, can be damaged by slugs. Because of the colchicine, the plant should be sited with care where children and animals are present and where livestock graze — contact with the sap irritates the skin, and swallowing any part risks severe poisoning. For the same reason it is unsuitable as a cut flower for homes with small children.
Trivia
- The flowers appear in autumn with no trace of leaves, which is why the plant is sometimes called 'naked ladies'.
- Colchicine from autumn crocus is an important reagent in plant breeding — it doubles the number of chromosomes, yielding polyploid varieties.
- The tuber can flower 'dry', lying on a windowsill without soil or water, drawing solely on reserves stored earlier.
- Although sometimes called 'meadow saffron', it has nothing to do with saffron — that comes from the crocus, while autumn crocus is deadly poisonous.
Frequently asked questions
How does autumn crocus differ from a crocus?
They are two different plants from separate families. Autumn crocus has six stamens, a crocus has three. Autumn crocus flowers in autumn (Sep–Oct) leafless and produces leaves only in spring; many crocuses flower in spring, together with their leaves. Autumn crocus is also highly poisonous.
Is autumn crocus poisonous?
Yes, highly. All parts, including the tuber and seeds, contain colchicine — an alkaloid with no known antidote. Poisoning can be fatal, and its symptoms appear after a delay of several hours. The plant should be kept away from children, pets and pastures; it is worth wearing gloves when planting the tubers.
When and how deep should autumn crocus tubers be planted?
The tubers are planted in summer, during dormancy (July–August), before the autumn flowers emerge. The depth is about 10 cm, spacing 10–15 cm, in a fertile, well-drained position with no waterlogging.
Why is my autumn crocus flowering without leaves?
This is a natural feature of the species, not a sign of disease. In autumn autumn crocus produces flowers only, and the broad, glossy leaves appear later in spring, together with the ripening seed capsule, and wither at the beginning of summer.
Can saffron be obtained from autumn crocus?
No. Saffron is the dried stigmas of the cultivated crocus (Crocus sativus). Autumn crocus, despite the misleading name 'meadow saffron', is deadly poisonous — trying to use it as a spice risks severe poisoning.
Sources
- Plants of the World Online (POWO) — Colchicum autumnaleDatabase (GBIF, POWO…)
- RHS — Colchicum autumnale (meadow saffron)Institution / botanical garden
- Missouri Botanical Garden — Colchicum autumnaleInstitution / botanical garden
- Rozporządzenie Ministra Środowiska z 9 października 2014 r. w sprawie ochrony gatunkowej roślin (ochrona częściowa)Institution / botanical garden
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