Crocus

Crocus

Crocuses grow from corms (like small bulbs) and flower in late winter and early spring. They are among the first food of the year for bees. They come back every year and spread into wide patches in borders and short grass. Let the leaves die back after flowering. In a lawn, don't mow until they have.

Looking after it

Water: Crocuses cope with dry spells and in the ground rarely need water. In a pot, keep the compost moist a few centimetres down while the leaves are up. Feeding: They need little food and none at all in the ground. In a pot, give a high-potassium liquid feed while the leaves are up. It helps next year's flowers.

Cutting and after flowering

There's no need to snip off the faded flowers. Leave the leaves until they die back. In a lawn, wait to mow until then, so the corms can build up and spread. Once the leaves have died, you can dig up crocuses in pots. Keep them in paper bags somewhere cool and dry until autumn.

What can go wrong

Squirrels and mice. They dig up and eat the corms after planting. Cover new plantings with chicken wire or metal mesh until the shoots are up.
Birds pecking flowers. Sparrows peck the flowers (often the yellow ones) and leave them torn and shredded. Black thread or netting over the clump protects them while they flower.
Few flowers. You get fewer flowers each year. Often the leaves were mown or cut before they died back, or the spot has become too shady. Leave the leaves alone and move clumps to a sunnier spot once they have died down for the year.

Growing facts: RHS, UC ANR and seed-company sowing guides. Crocus care: RHS. pH: University of Connecticut soil testing lab. Pot size: Purdue University extension.