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How to grow Crocuses in the UK

Little goblets of purple, white and yellow in late winter - and early food for bees.

• DifficultyEasy peasy
• WhereBeds or Pots
• Sunfull sun or part shade
• Grows to10cm
• Spacing8cm
• Time to first pickabout 20 weeks
• Typebulb

When to sow, plant and harvest crocuses

Dates are for central England. Sow about two weeks later in the north and Scotland, and up to two weeks earlier in the south and south west. Get the dates for your postcode.

Planting it

1. Dig a hole to a depth of 8cm
2. Set each one in with the pointy end (or the shoots) facing up
3. Space them 8cm apart each way
4. Cover with soil, press down gently and water well
5. Push in a label so you don't dig them up by mistake

Top tips for growing crocuses

• Plant them in a lawn for a spring carpet - wait until the leaves die back before mowing.

Soil and feeding

Poor soil - really!. Nasturtiums flower best in poor soil. Feed them and you get all leaves and no flowers.

Harvesting and eating crocuses

Enjoy them on sunny days when they open wide.

Saving your own crocuses seed

They come back every year.

1. Leave the leaves to die back naturally - they feed next year's flowers
2. Bulbs slowly multiply underground. Every few years, dig up crowded clumps after the leaves die and replant them spread out

Where to buy crocuses plants

Thompson & Morgan · Suttons · Amazon

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Crocuses questions

When do I plant out crocuses?

Plant crocuses out from early September to mid November.

When can I enjoy crocuses?

Crocuses is ready from early February to late March. Enjoy them on sunny days when they open wide.

How long do crocuses take to grow?

Roughly 20 weeks from sowing or planting until the first harvest.

Are crocuses easy to grow?

Crocuses are rated 'easy peasy' for beginners, and can be grown in the ground or a raised bed or in pots and containers.