SwiftModestProposal
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Year 2 for my saffron crocuses! I'm excited that any came up this year as I did not tend to the beds at all since harvest last year.
First day harvest. Lots of meticulous delicate work with the tweezers. It smells so lovely. Off to the dehydrator for a few days!
If you're wondering why I put the strands on paper towels instead of directly on the screens, it's something new I'm trying this year. Last year I put the stands directly on the screen but when the strands dried they were so small they kept getting caught on the fine mesh of the screen, breaking and would slip through the mesh. I lost a lot on the ground. Hoping the paper towels help prevent that this time around.
DigYourselfBaby
Wow. Much wow. I'm impressed.
SuicidalBallsack
Good luck!
HipCaneDad
I dry a lot of sugared pansies on parchment paper to minimize sticking
KalypsoKirin
Congratulations! Now you can make your own saffron rice!
bambulina
I've been considering making some window boxes just for these. Safe to assume they're easy to grow if they can just be ignored? Lol
BipedalHumanoidWithSlightlyDifferentNoseRidge
Expensive stuff!
Miauw5
I didn't use a dehydrator, but instead opted for paper towel near the radiator. It came of the paper towel intact, hope it works out for you as well !
somethingstupidandclever
@op. Do parchment paper. Might stick to the paper towel.
HelloLetsGo
Congratulations! You're definitely having a better day than me
Footstepsofdawn
So it’s just the little pestles and stamens of flowers? I never knew!!!
SandalsandSocks
You cut off their dicks and now you are going to flavor your rice with them.....brutal.
Neednoggle
Huh, I don't know where I thought saffron came from, but I didn't realise it was flowers. Cool, I learned a thing this morning!
madsander
🎵I’m just mad about saffron,and she just mad about me…🎶
historycat
The most expensive food on earth.
MyCatIsMissingAnEar
Thank you for the reminder! I Need to go check on mine yet today. I only have a few bulbs but I've already pulled two sets of threads off!
yummilicious
The flowers are so pretty!
MartinGoller
Feel free to plant those (the non saffron varieties), as they are lowest maintenance, easy to plant, self replicating flowers that will flower very early and are loved by pollinators.
My grandma planted some in one small spot in our garden and over 50 years they have taken over the whole place and even the neighborhood.
YourFellowMan
I was today years old when I learned where saffron came from.
mushroommunching
I had NO IDEA that's where saff comes from. What a cool post! And CONGRATULATIONS!! What a treat
nerad137
I should try them in some kind of fortified containers. They are just so vulnerable to deer and bunnies and other munchers.
TsubakiTragic
Well done... I hope it all goes well for you.
PixelSprite64
beholder87
That is quite a fine collection of plant reproductive organs you have there
KultofTimon
This is wonderful.
inthepines
I'm just wild about saffron
pareidoliaperson
The tea will be exquisite.
ParallelParkingInABurka
Somehow i never considered one could just grow saffron!
CreepyPhlox
TIL saffron is a crocus!
ParallelParkingInABurka
I knew it was, which makes it even weirder that I never thought about growing it yourself! After all, wild crocuses are all over the place every spring & fall, so it seems so obvious.
welluhwhatdoyouwantmetosay
At over $10/gram, why not?
pareidoliaperson
I wonder what country they're from.
HandoB4Javert
One of the Earth ones.
JackHL01
in this economy?
OneBabyOneHamburgerBun
Which Earth though? I hear there are several now.
Kehy
It's a crocus, which quite frankly are harder make not grow than grow
ParallelParkingInABurka
I know, that's why I was so surprised at myself! To be fair, though, I'm going to assume that the saffron crocus doesn't actually grow easily where I live, considering it's at home in much warmer climes. But still!
Kehy
Saffron has bee grown extensively in England for centuries, and I'd hardly call that warm.
ParallelParkingInABurka
Didn't know that, neat!
samwyze
#3 All I can see in my mind's eye is Ren Höek pulling those from his gum holes.
StewedTomaters
Core memory unlocked. Let's see if we can find it on Imgur already...
StewedTomaters
samwyze
I love/hate you. You're the absolute best/worst.
ElbowDeepInUserSub
If it makes you feel any better, wikipedia has them shown being dried on a sheet of some kind.
rezexelon
Id probably recommend wax paper rather than a paper towel though....
SwiftModestProposal
Multiple sources say paper towels is perfectly fine. As well as clean cloths, baking racks, and fine mesh screens. The most important thing is temperature & humidity control.
rezexelon
I mean, logically sure --- just my experience with dehydrating things makes me think that it'd be a bit easier with wax paper to get all the good stuff off at the end. Even with paper towels I imagine there's a higher chance of waste. When I was doing things like dill, basil and other herbs that was my preference anyways.
AntaNce
I helped do this a while back, they used cheap scarves from thrift store. Wash em, stretch flat, rubber band over cardboard. It was fun!
SwiftModestProposal
I only do it for a hobby and my own personal use, so it's not like it matters *that* much if the strands break. Just hated losing any because it's so much work to get so little
UnBobaLievable
Maybe try Washi paper. Still porous but won't be as weird of a texture for the stamens to dry on? And you can get rolls of it for calligraphy for fairly cheap
wagnus
what do you do with the saffron? I've heard it can be considered a nootropic
SwiftModestProposal
I use it in cooking. More meant I wasn't growing with the intention of selling because it is a very expensive spice
wagnus
yeah! I wonder if it could be financially lucrative growing your own. I have a lot of questions because I'm interested but don't want to bog you down
imakedreamcatchers
@op you can make St. Lucia saffron buns in December 🤤
SwiftModestProposal
Great idea!
StewedTomaters
"Mild toxicity includes dizziness, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea, whereas at higher doses there can be reduced platelet count and spontaneous bleeding." From Wikipedia, talking about eating ~5 grams of the stuff.
wagnus
I think the "nootropic dose" is like 88mg - hopefully you weren't talking that dose, right?
StewedTomaters
If it does anything at all. Wouldn't a plate of paella get you that?