SAFFRON, in the materia medica, is formed of the stigmata of the erocus officinalis *, dried on a + See Cro-kiln, and pressed together into cakes. Of this there are two kinds, the English and Spanish; of which the latter is by far the most esteemed. Saffron is principally cultivated in Cambridgeshire, in a circle of about ten miles diameter. The greatest part of this tract is an open level country, with few inclosures; and the custom there is, as in most other places, to crop two years, and let the land be fallow the third. Saffron is generally planted upon fallow ground, and, all other things being alike, they prefer that which has borne barley the year before.
The saffron ground is seldom above three acres, or less than one; and, in choosing, the principal thing they have regard to is, that they be well exposed, the soil not poor, nor a very stiff clay, but a temperate dry mould, such as commonly lies upon chalk, and is of an hazel-colour; though, if every thing else answers, the colour of the mould is pretty much neglected.
The ground being made choice of, about Lady-day, or the beginning of April, it must be carefully ploughed, the furrows being drawn much closer together, and deeper, if the soil will allow it, than is done for any kind of corn; and accordingly the charge is greater.
About five weeks after, during any time in the month of May, they lay between 20 and 30 loads of dung upon each acre, and having spread it with great care, they plough it in as before. The shortest rotten dung is the best; and the farmers, who have the convenience of making it, spare no pains to make it good, being sure of a proportionable price for it. About Midsummer they plough a third time, and between every 16 feet and an half they leave a broad furrow or trench, which serves both as a boundary to the several parcels, and for throwing the weeds into at the proper season. The time of planting is commonly in the month of July. The only instrument used at this time is a small narrow spade, commonly called a spit-shovel. The method is this: One man with his shovel raises about three, or four inches of earth, and throws it before him about six or more inches. Two persons, generally women, follow with roots, which they place in the farthest edge of the trench made by the digger, at about three inches from each other. As soon as the digger has gone once the breadth of the ridge, he begins again at the other side; and, digging as before, covers the roots left set, which makes room for another row of roots at the same distance from the first that they are from one another. The only dexterity necessary in digging is, to leave some part of the first stratum of earth untouched, to lie under the roots; and, in setting, to place the roots directly upon their bottom. The quantity of roots planted on an acre is generally,
Saffron. nerally about 16 quarts, or 128 bushels. From the
time of planting till the beginning of September, or
sometimes later, there is no more labour required; but
at that time they begin to vegetate, and are ready to
show themselves above ground, which may be known
by digging up a few of the roots. The ground is then
to be pared with a sharp hoe, and the weeds raked
into the furrows, otherwise they would hinder the
growth of the saffron. In some time after, the flowers
appear.
They are gathered before they are full-blown, as
well as after, and the proper time for it is early in the
morning. The owners of the saffron-fields get together
a sufficient number of hands, who pull off the whole
flowers, and throw them by handfuls into a basket,
and so continue till about 11 o'clock. Having then
carried home the flowers, they immediately fall to
picking out the stigmata or chives, and together with
them a pretty large proportion of the stylus itself, or
stipe to which they are attached: the rest of the
flower they throw away as useless. Next morning they
return to the field, without regarding whether the
weather be wet or dry; and so on daily, even on Sun-
days, till the whole crop is gathered.—The next la-
bour is to dry the chives on the kiln. The kiln is built
upon a thick plank, that it may be moved from place
to place. It is supported by four short legs; the out-
side consists of eight pieces of wood of three inches
thick, in form of a quadrangular frame about twelve
inches square at the bottom on the inside, and 22 on
the upper part; which last is likewise the perpendicular
height of it. On the fore-side is left a hole of about
eight inches square, and four inches above the plank,
through which the fire is put in; over all the rest laths
are laid pretty thick, close to one another, and nailed
to the frame already mentioned. They are then plai-
stered over on both sides, as are also the planks at
bottom, very thick, to serve for an hearth. Over the
mouth is laid a hair-cloth, fixed to the edges of the
kiln, and likewise to two rollers, or moveable pieces
of wood, which are turned by wedges or screws, in
order to stretch the cloth. Instead of the hair-cloth,
some people use a net-work, or iron-wire, by which
the saffron is sooner dried, and with less fuel; but the
difficulty of preserving it from burning makes the hair-
cloth preferred by the best judges. The kiln is placed
in a light part of the house, and they begin with put-
ting five or six sheets of white paper on the hair-cloth,
and upon these they lay out the wet saffron two or three
inches thick. It is then covered with some other sheets
of paper, and over these they lay a coarse blanket
five or six times doubled, or instead of this, a canvas
pillow filled with straw; and after the fire has been
lighted for some time, the whole is covered with a
board having a considerable weight upon it. At first
they apply a pretty strong heat, to make the chives
sweat, as they call it; and at this time a great deal of
care is necessary to prevent burning. When it has thus
been dried about an hour, they turn the cakes of saf-
fron upside down, putting on the coverings and weight
as before. If no sinister accident happens during these
first two hours, the danger is thought to be over; and
nothing more is requisite than to keep up a very gentle
fire for 24 hours, turning the cake every half hour.
That fuel is best which yields the least smoke; and
for this reason charcoal is preferable to all others.
The quantity of saffron produced at a crop is uncer-
tain. Sometimes five or six pounds of wet chives are
got from one rood, sometimes not above one or two;
and sometimes not so much as is sufficient to defray the
expence of gathering and drying. But it is always ob-
served, that about five pounds of wet saffron go to
make one pound of dry for the first three weeks of the
crop, and six pounds during the last week. When
the heads are planted very thick, two pounds of dry
saffron may, at a medium be allowed to an acre for the
first crop, and 24 pounds for the two remaining
ones, the third being considerably larger than the sec-
ond.
To obtain the second and third crops, the labour of
hoeing, gathering, picking, &c. already mentioned,
must be repeated; and about midsummer, after the third
crop is gathered, the roots must all be taken up and
transplanted. For taking up the roots, sometimes the
plough is made use of, and sometimes a forked hoe;
and then the ground is harrowed once or twice over.
During all the time of ploughing, harrowing, &c. 5
15 or more people will find work enough to follow
and gather the heads as they are turned up. The roots
are next to be carried to the house in sacks, where they
are cleaned and rased. This labour consists in clean-
ing the roots thoroughly from earth, decayed old pie-
ces, involucre, or excrescences; after which they be-
come fit to be planted in new ground immediately, or
they may be kept for some time, without danger of
spoiling. The quantity of roots taken up in proportion
to those planted, is uncertain; but, at a medium, 24
quarters of clean roots, fit to be planted, may be had
from each acre.—There sometimes happens a re-
markable change in the roots of saffron and some other
plants. As soon as they begin to shoot upwards, there
are commonly two or three large tap-roots sent forth
from the side of the old one, which will run two or
three inches deep into the ground. At the place where
these bulbs first come out from, the old one will be
formed sometimes, though not always, and the tap-
root then decays. The bulb increases in bigness, and
at last falls quite off; which commonly happens in Ap-
ril. But many times these tap-roots never produce
any bulbs, and remain barren for ever after. All such
roots therefore should be thrown away in the making a
new plantation. This degeneracy of the roots is a dis-
ease for which no cure is as yet known.
When saffron is offered to sale, that kind ought to
be chosen which has the broadest blades; this being
the mark by which English saffron is distinguished from
the foreign. It ought to be of an orange, or fiery-
red colour, and to yield a dark yellow tincture. It
should be chosen fresh, not above a year old, in close
cakes, neither dry nor yet very moist, tough and firm
in tearing, of the same colour within as without, and
of a strong, acrid, diffusive smell.
This drug has been reckoned a very elegant and
useful aromatic. Besides the virtues it has in common
with other substances of that class, it has been accounted
one of the highest cordials, and is said to exhilarate the
spirits to such a degree as, when taken in large doses,
to occasion immoderate mirth, involuntary laughter,
and
and the ill effects which follow from the abuse of spirituous liquors. This medicine is particularly serviceable in hysterical depressions proceeding from a cold cause or obstruction of the uterine secretions, where other aromatics, even those of the more generous kind, have little effect. Saffron imparts the whole of its virtue and colour to rectified spirit, proof spirit, wine, vinegar, and water: A tincture drawn with vinegar, loses greatly of its colour in keeping: the watery and vinous tinctures are apt to grow sour, and then lose their colour also: that made in pure spirit keeps in perfection for many years.
Meadow Saffron. See COLCHICUM.