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Bulb sales for fall 2021 are SUSPENDED.
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Fall 2023 shipping is over. Thank you for a great season!

Order these fall-planted bulbs NOW for delivery in October.

WHY GROW CROCUS? There’s always room for crocus! You can squeeze hundreds into empty scraps of space. They bloom when you’re hungriest for flowers. They multiply quickly. And their thin, wispy foliage disappears quickly.

CROCUS HISTORY — Native from Spain to Afghanistan, crocus have been cherished in gardens since at least the 1500s. Learn more.

TIPS FOR SUCCESS — Though they love sun, crocus can thrive in light shade under trees, shrubs, and perennials, and even in the lawn sometimes. Learn more.

On sale now! One of the “bluest” of the lavender crocuses, this mid-century classic is another enduring gift from G.H. Hageman, the godfather of snow crocus. It’s bright, lovely, and vigorous – which is why it’s still around for us to enjoy today. 3”, zones 4a-7b(8bWC), from Holland. Chart and care.

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C. angustifolius,
Cloth of Gold crocus     1587

On sale now! Once known as the “Turkey crocus,” this small, early, vigorously multiplying charmer was grown in gardens by 1587 and appears in virtually every bulb catalog of the 1800s. Bees flock to it. Formerly C. susianus, zones 4a-7b(8bWC), from Holland. Chart and care.

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On sale now! “The color of proper Jersey cream,” writes bulb-maven Anna Pavord, but even if you don’t know what she’s talking about it’s easy to like ‘Cream Beauty’. Pale and glowing, it was one of the first crocus introduced by G.H. Hageman, the man who made C. chrysanthus an indispensable part of spring. 3”, zones 4a-7b(8bWC), from Holland. Chart and care.

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On sale now! This multiple award-winning crocus is both vigorous and beautiful – a white so pure and luminous that it seems the embodiment of spring’s miraculous rebirth. C. vernus, zones 4a-7b(8bWC), from Holland. Chart and care.

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On sale now! This long-loved Victorian king alternates mostly striped petals with mostly purple ones for a look that’s charmingly imperfect, like your grandmother’s patchwork quilt. C. vernus, zones 4a-7b(8bWC), from Holland. Chart and care.

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On sale now! Gotta have it! This is the most popular crocus of the past 300 years, a vibrant orange-yellow like molten sun melting winter’s icy grip. C. x luteus, zones 4a-7b(8bWC), from Holland. Chart and care.

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C. chrysanthus,
Prins Claus crocus     1967

On sale now! Like other snow crocus, this eye-catching prince of the C. chrysanthus lineage is an early bloomer, distinguished by its regal deep, dark purple petals that alternate with white ones to enliven your spring garden. 3-4”, zones 4a-7b(8bWC), from Holland. Chart, care, and learn more.

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Vanguard crocus     1934

On sale now! The earliest-blooming Crocus vernus (and one of our favorite spring treats), this former Russian wildflower opens its platinum outer petals to reveal an exciting contrast – inner petals of soft, luscious amethyst. Zones 4a-7b(8bWC), from Holland. Chart and care.

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tommasinianus
Albus crocus     1847
Rarest

Radiant against the moist dark earth of spring, these slender-petaled stars are as eager and prolific as all of our tommies. You’ll enjoy multiple blooms per corm, and a “Starry Night” that gets better every year. C. tommasinianus, Zones 5b-8a(8bWC). Chart and care. If you’d like to be notified when it’s back in stock, click here to sign up for an email alert.

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speciosus ‘Conqueror’ crocus     1967
Rarest & New

This larger-flowered variety of fall-blooming Crocus speciosus brings glowing violet-blue blossoms with bright orange centers to brighten autumn beds just as most plants are going dormant, often sending up flowers before their leaves emerge fully. The cup-shaped flowers look much like their spring-blooming cousins and naturalize well where happy. Plant as soon as possible in fall to encourage first-year bloom. 3-4”, zones 4a-7b(8bWC), from Holland. Chart and care. If you’d like to be notified when it’s back in stock, click here to sign up for an email alert.

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The way we see it, deep purple crocus are a spring essential, and this 1950s classic is the only one still grown in Dutch bulb fields today. We’d love to know what its odd name means. Can you help? 4-5”, zones 4a-7b(8bWC), from Holland. Chart and care. If you’d like to be notified when it’s back in stock, click here to sign up for an email alert.

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C. sieberi ,
Hubert Edelsten crocus     1924
Rarest

This rare form of C. sieberi was developed nearly a century ago by Mr. Edelsten, a neighbor of British garden-writer E.A. Bowles who described the man as “almost as mad about crocuses as I am” and his variety as “very beautiful.” The three outer petals are bright purple with a dramatic white band matching the white of the inner petals. Bright orange stamens add to the glory! 3-4”, zones 4a-7b(8bWC), from Holland. Chart, care, and learn more. If you’d like to be notified when it’s back in stock, click here to sign up for an email alert.

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C. tommasinianus
Roseus crocus     1924

A PINK crocus? Not quite, but it’s the closest any crocus gets to pink, a soft lavender-rose that’s utterly unique. Adding to its charms, it opens its petals exuberantly in the sun, making a constellation of tiny pink stars that just gets better every year. Zones 5a-8a(8bWC), from Holland. Chart and care. If you’d like to be notified when it’s back in stock, click here to sign up for an email alert.

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C. sativus,
Saffron crocus     1700 BC
New

The lilac to purple flowers of the saffron crocus have been cultivated for millenia around the Mediterranean for their red-orange pistils which are used as a prized seasoning. While relatively easy to establish even in areas too warm for spring-blooming varieties, this crocus can be fickle, blooming some autumns and not others - but what a treat it is when it does! Though it can take over 4000 flowers to produce an ounce of saffron, it’s fun to grow some of your own to flavor a very special dish. Plant as soon as possible in fall to encourage first-year bloom. 4-6”, zones 6a-8b(9aWC), from Holland. Chart and care. If you’d like to be notified when it’s back in stock, click here to sign up for an email alert.

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C. tommasinianus,
tommies crocus     1847

Self-sowing like wildflowers, these soft lavender pixies will sprinkle themselves through your garden and into the lawn. Rated “most rodent-resistant” by the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, they’re hardy to zone 5 (some say 3) and they’re the best crocus for the South. Zones 5a-8a(9aWC), from Holland. Chart and care. If you’d like to be notified when it’s back in stock, click here to sign up for an email alert.

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C. biflorus,
Weldenii Fairy crocus     1952
Rarest

This magical variety of C. biflorus, or Scotch crocus, has outer petals of light violet and silvery-white centers with a lilac blush. These diminutive sprites bloom early and naturalize well where happy. 3-4”, zones 4a-7b(8bWC), from Holland. Chart, care, and learn more. If you’d like to be notified when it’s back in stock, click here to sign up for an email alert.

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WHY GROW CROCUS? There’s always room for crocus! You can squeeze hundreds of them into empty scraps of space. They bloom when you’re the hungriest for flowers. They multiply quickly. And their thin, wispy foliage disappears quickly.

HISTORY — Native from Spain to Afghanistan, crocus have been cherished in gardens since the 1500s. Victorian gardeners planted entire carpet-beds of them. Species or snow crocus, though most popular today, were rare in gardens before 1940.

CROCUS ARCHIVES — For customer tips and raves, the stories behind the bulbs, links and books, history, news, and more, see our Crocus Newsletter Archives.

CROCUS IN THE LAWN — Though it’s never the first place we recommend planting crocus, in the right conditions some varieties can do well in lawns. For helpful advice from our customers (and the Missouri Botanical Garden), see our “Crocus in the Lawn” page.

PLANTING & CARE — For best growth and bloom, plant crocus as soon as the soil cools in the fall, giving them as long as possible to establish roots before soil freezes completely. If absolutely necessary, store briefly in open bags in a cool, dry spot.

Choose a site with well-drained soil (avoid or improve clay soil) in full sun to very light shade. Crocus often do well in the dappled shade of deciduous trees and shrubs or around the base of perennials such as peonies because they can complete most of their life cycle before these plants leaf out completely and limit their sun. Though they prefer neutral to slightly alkaline soil, they are very adaptable.

For SNOW OR SPECIES CROCUS, plant with the base 2-3 inches deep and 2-3 inches apart from center to center (or closer for a lush look).

For TRADITIONAL CROCUS, plant with the base 3-4 inches deep and 3-4 inches apart from center to center (or closer for a lush look).

Plant with the growing tip up. Scratch a little bulb fertilizer into the surface soil (slow-release 10-10-10 is ideal). Water and make sure the soil stays reasonably moist from fall through spring. During the summer, however, crocus do better if the soil is dry.

If animals dig your newly-planted bulbs, try covering them for a couple of weeks with chicken wire, plastic-mesh netting, old screens, etc. An airy mulch of straw, etc., can be helpful the first winter, but remove it in earliest spring.

Do NOT apply a thick mulch of shredded bark, etc. Crocus are too small to push their way up through a thick, heavy mulch.

After bloom, allow the foliage to yellow completely (to feed the bulbs for increase and future bloom) before removing.