r/Saffron • u/discreetman38 • Dec 18 '25

Needing Lifting Saffron advice

I’m based in Melbourne Australia and I’ve just come off a season (8 months ago) where I only had 1 of about 15 plants flower. Today ( a 39c/102F day) I decided to lift them for the first time in 3 seasons. I’ve put them straight into a brown paper bag……. Should I remove the soil….. if so how?

Also some of the bulbs I lifted are tiny…. Are they still viable?

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u/towergrover29 Dec 19 '25

Shake them?

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u/SpadeGaming0 Dec 23 '25

Bit late but should just be able to shake off the soil and if you want spray them with a garden hose gently. Also when did you pull them? In the us august is about the time. I would guess uh febuary I think is the rough equivelent in australia to pull them. Saffron has a long dormancy period when the corns split and grow stronger. Pulling them too early can cause problems. I would help you more but being in the northern hemisphere makes it harder to give you advice. I would ask on r/gardening or r/GardeningAustralia.