Saffron in bloom Nov 6, 2019

Saffron in bloom

It"s harvest time for saffron, the precious seasoning that"s mostly grown in Iran, but used in cuisines around the world. Saffron is derived from the saffron crocus, an autumn-flowering plant with purple petals as richly hued as the vivid crimson stigmas (called "threads") in the center of the bloom. These threads are carefully extracted by hand with tweezers and dried before they"re used for cooking. Each flower comes with just three threads, and it takes a lot of them—roughly 75,000 crocuses will yield just one pound of saffron. The entire harvest can last only about a week or two, because that"s the short life of the saffron crocus bloom.

© Juan-Carlos Munoz/Minden Pictures

palette

Today in History

Nov 6, 2018A truly American monument
Nov 6, 2020Life in the slow lane
Nov 6, 2021World Numbat Day
Nov 6, 2022New York City Marathon
Nov 6, 2023Lake Pehoé, Torres del Paine National Park, Chile
Nov 6, 2024Shi Shi Beach, Olympic National Park, Washington
Nov 6, 2025Celebrating Yi Peng

More Desktop Wallpapers:

Jun 5, 2021Bird s-eye view on World Environment Day
Jan 9, 2022Rice processing in Bangladesh
May 1, 2023Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month
Nov 10, 202547 years of Badlands National Park
Oct 12, 2023Farmers Day
Dec 22, 2018Night of the ‘Cold Moon’
Jun 18, 2021A city of bridges
Sep 5, 20242024 Toronto International Film Festival
Feb 11, 2018Te Rewa Rewa Bridge near New Plymouth, New Zealand
Mar 24, 2018Crimson-rumped toucanet in the Refugio Paz de Las Aves, Ecuador
Aug 14, 2024World Lizard Day
Jan 16, 2018Lionfish off the coast of Indonesia
Oct 27, 2023Sligachan Old Bridge, Isle of Skye, Scotland
Jul 10, 2019Put your helmet on, we’re going for a hike
Aug 7, 2024St. Joseph North Pier Inner and Outer Lights, Michigan
Nov 22, 2022Red fox in the Netherlands
Apr 17, 2018The Children’s Cultural Festival in Reykjavik begins today
Aug 20, 2025The citadel in Bonifacio, Southern Corsica, France
Apr 12, 2025International Day of Human Space Flight
Jun 20, 2026Arched iceberg, western Antarctic Peninsula, Southern Ocean
Sep 13, 2021Sand, sun, and sk8ers
Nov 11, 2018Poppies for Armistice Day
May 21, 2026International Tea Day
Oct 24, 2021Bavljenac Island
Jul 23, 2020At the foot of Dubrovnik s Gibraltar
Aug 17, 2021Wanderin Wawayanda
Jan 28, 2020US Coast Guard: Protecting us for 105 years
Sep 8, 2022Seville, Spain
Jun 8, 2022World Oceans Day
Nov 24, 2018The tortoise and the finch