Kotschy's crocus

Kotschy's crocus: how do you recognise it?

Habit

Small corm plant of about 10 cm high with flowers held on long white tubes.

Leaves

Narrow and grass-like, dark green with a pale midrib; appear around or soon after flowering and stay green through winter until May–June.

Flowers

Pale to lavender-lilac, with orange-yellow spots in the throat, in September–October; opens on sunny days.

Bulb/corm

A small, round corm with a brown fibrous tunic; a new corm forms every year.

Spreading

Forms cormlets and self-seeds; a small group becomes a lovely carpet within a few years.

Flowering: September–October · Plants: July–August

Why grow it?

• Flowers in September–October, when the garden is losing colour and bees are still looking for food.
• Soft lilac flowers with orange-yellow spots in the throat: delicate and eye-catching.
• Easy, hardy and reliable; it multiplies by itself.
• Naturalises beautifully in grass and under trees and shrubs.
• Small size: suits the rock garden, border, lawn or a pot.

Kotschy's crocus: where does it grow best?

• Sun to half shade; also under deciduous trees and shrubs, where it is dry in summer.
• Ordinary, well-drained garden soil: sand, loam or clay, neutral to chalky.
• Normally moist; dry during the summer rest, no wet feet.
• Allow 8–10 cm between corms; plant in groups or scatter them for a natural effect.

Light

Sun and partial shade

Soil type

Sand, loam or clay

Acidity

Neutral or chalky

Moisture

Normal

Size

0.1 m tall, 0.05 m wide

Hardiness

Hardy (to -25 °C)

Goes well with

• Autumn cyclamen: Flowers at about the same time and loves shade under trees.
• Stonecrop: Late flowers, suits the same sunny spots.
• Ornamental grass: Soft plumes that show off the low crocus flowers.
• Heuchera: Coloured foliage that sets off the soft lilac flowers, in sun or half shade.
• Barrenwort: Low foliage under trees, in the same half shade.

Kotschy's crocus: when and how to plant it?

Plant in July–August.

1. Plant the corms as early as possible in July–August; they dry out quickly and sometimes flower in the same autumn.
2. Loosen the soil and mix heavy clay with a little coarse sand or compost.
3. Plant the corms 8–10 cm deep, pointed end up; in grass use a bulb planter or lift a piece of turf.
4. Leave 8–10 cm between the corms and plant in groups of 10 or more.
5. Water a little after planting in dry weather; in autumn the rain is enough.

Care

Water

Usually not needed: the rain is enough. If autumn is dry after planting, water generously once.

Feeding

Not needed. A thin layer of compost in autumn or spring is a bonus.

Mulching

A thin layer of leaf mould in autumn suppresses weeds without covering the leaves.

Leave the leaves

Leave the foliage after flowering and in spring until it is yellow and limp, usually in May–June.

Mowing grass

In a lawn: only mow once the crocus leaves have died down, often in June.

Tip: Plant the corms as early as possible in summer, in groups under a tree or in grass: they naturalise and multiply year after year. Only mow once the leaves have died down.

Kotschy's crocus: when to prune it?

When: Pruning is not needed; just remove faded flowers and withered leaves.

How:

• Let the foliage die back naturally in May–June; only cut it off when it is yellow and limp.
• Remove faded flowers only if you want it tidy; they can also stay.
• In grass: do not mow before the crocus leaves have died down.

Caution: Do not cut off the green leaves too early: the corm needs them to store energy for next year.

Pruning calendar and basic rules

Propagation

Dividing corms

Lift dense clumps after the leaves have died back (May–June), about every 3–4 years. Separate the cormlets and replant straight away in July–August.

Seed

The species self-seeds. To sow yourself: sow fresh seed in spring or autumn; it takes several years until the first flowers.

Kotschy's crocus: how does it get through the winter?

Hardy to −25 °C.

• Very hardy, to about −25 °C: no protection needed in Flanders.
• The leaves stay green through winter; frost and snow do not harm them.
• In a pot: put it in a sheltered spot in hard frost so the corms do not freeze solid.

Diseases and pests

• Mice and voles: They eat the corms. Plant in wire-mesh baskets or choose a spot they visit less.
• Corm rot: Soft, mouldy corms in wet soil. Provide drainage and a dry summer rest.
• Birds and slugs: Sparrows shred flowers, slugs nibble flowers in damp weather. Protect with netting or collect the slugs.
• Weakened plants in a mown lawn: Mowing before the leaves have died down weakens the plant. Wait until June.

Through the year

• January: Leaves stay green in winter. No work.
• February: Leaves keep growing.
• March: Leave the foliage.
• April: Leave the foliage; do not mow.
• May: Leaves die back. Lift and divide corms if needed.
• June: Mow the lawn once the leaves have died down. Summer rest.
• July: Plant corms.
• August: Plant corms.
• September: Flowering begins.
• October: Full bloom.
• November: Leaves appear. Clear fallen leaves.
• December: Rest.

Edible and useful

Not edible. These autumn-flowering crocuses are also mildly poisonous: eating a corm or leaves can cause stomach upsets, with vomiting and diarrhoea, and dogs and cats fall ill from them too. They flower in autumn, like the saffron crocus and the highly poisonous Colchicum, and look like both. Saffron comes only from the saffron crocus (Crocus sativus), with its three long red stigmas: do not harvest saffron from these crocuses, and if you want saffron, grow crocuses sold as Crocus sativus. Colchicum, which is also called autumn crocus or meadow saffron, is not a crocus and has six stamens instead of three. They are all planted in summer, like the saffron crocus and Colchicum: keep the corms separate and labelled, and out of reach of children and pets. If any is swallowed, call a poison centre (in Belgium 070 245 245) or your doctor at once.

Good for wildlife

Bees

Nectar and pollen for honeybees and wild bees.

Did you know?

• Crocus kotschyanus is named after Theodor Kotschy, an Austrian botanist who travelled through Asia Minor and the Middle East in the 19th century.
• The old name Crocus zonatus refers to the coloured zones (spots) in the throat of the flower.
• Saffron comes from the stigmas of another crocus, Crocus sativus, which also flowers in autumn.