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 he amazing thing about crocuses is that you can have them flowering in the garden for ten months of the year, from September to June, kicking off with the purple blue Crocus banaticus and ending with the yellow Crocus cvijivii. There are more than 80 species, including expensive collectors' items that need special conditions. And if you get totally hooked on crocuses, you can grow them in great swarms, like the great Irish writer William Robinson (1838-1935) who planted over 5,000 bulbs at his Sussex home, Gravetye Manor.
 ccording to legend the Greek Gods Zeus & Hura loved each other so passionately that the land where they lived burst open with crocuses.
Crocuses were brought to England from France by Jean Robin, a Director of Gardens in Paris. Crocuses came to the United States on ships by settlers who planted them around their cabins.
he crocus was famous for both aesthetic and practical reasons in the ancient world. A flower of ritual and ornament, the crocus was also used in medicine, as food and as a source of dye. The crocus was connected with ceremonies. Its petals were scattered on the ground at social gatherings and on the matrimonial bed after a wedding.
Crocus essence was used as a perfume and, of course, the stamens of autumn-flowering Crocus sativus are the source of saffron.
A flower so popular inspired many myths. A favorite is one that involves not a single mean spirited thought or act, no jealousy, no murder — only love.
 oung Crocus was a shepherd boy of fine and noble spirit. He fell deeply in love with the lovely nymph Smilax. So impressed were the gods with the depth of his devotion that they granted him immortality in the time-honored way. Yep, they turned him into a flower. To ensure that they could be forever together, Smilax got her eternal reward as an evergreen, the yew.
The best places to see crocuses growing in the wild are in southern Europe and right around the Mediterranean. Crocus goulimyi is a gorgeous sight in southern Greece, turning the land lilac blue under the olive trees. The yellow Crocus chrysanthus, which as provided terrific cultivars such as 'Zwanenburg Bronze' (yellow within and bronze outside), grows in Turkey, and the scented violet Crocus longiflorus lights up the island of Malta. But don't expect ot see crocuses in Saffron Waldon in Essex.
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