Introduction of high-value Crocus sativus (saffron) cultivation in non-traditional regions of India through ecological modelling

Abstract

Crocus sativus L. (saffron) is a globally used expensive spice. There are a few countries like Iran, Greece, Morocco, Spain, Italy, Turkey, France, Switzerland, Pakistan, China, Japan and Australia where this spice is cultivated and exported to other countries. India contributes 5% of the world's total production of which 90% is supplied only from its Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) regions. In India, the production of saffron from J&K is 3.83 tonnes whereas its annual demand is approximately 100 tonnes. In this country, there are geographical regions that have similar environmental and ecological conditions to J&K and possess the possibility of introducing this crop. Identification of such regions can be made using Ecological Niche Modelling (ENM). Therefore, 'MaxEnt' ENM was carried out using 103 environmental variables, 20 presence data and topographic parameters (elevation, slope and aspect) to find suitable regions for saffron production in unconventional areas of India. The achieved area under the curve for the model was 0.99. The precipitation and temperature were the main environmental variable influencing its cultivation. The saffron was sowed in these new modelled locations in India representing its various states such as Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Manipur and Tamil Nadu. The quality, as well as yield of saffron produced in some of these regions, were evaluated and found at par with the saffron grown traditionally in India. Based on the promising results obtained in this work, we are expanding saffron cultivation to more modelled areas in India to meet our national demand.

Injury and not the pathogen is the primary cause of corm rot in Crocus sativus (saffron)

“…Corm rot disease is reported to be the major biotic stress of Crocus sativus (saffron), resulting in severe yield loss ( Cardone et al., 2020 ; Kothari et al., 2021 ; Kumar et al., 2022a ). Though various bacterial and fungal pathogens are reported to cause corm rot ( Gupta et al., 2021 ), Fusarium oxysporum is reported to be the most devastating ( Palmero et al., 2014 ; Husaini and Jiménez, 2022 ).…”

Current Knowledge of the Antidepressant Activity of Chemical Compounds from Crocus sativus L.

“…Crocus sativus L. (family Iridaceae), commonly known as saffron crocus, is a therapeutic plant native to Asia Minor and Southern Europe [ 133 , 134 , 135 , 136 , 137 , 138 , 139 ]. The plant is cultivated in Iran, India, Afghanistan, Greece, Morocco, and Italy [ 133 , 134 , 135 , 136 , 137 , 138 , 139 , 140 , 141 , 142 ]. It propagates vegetatively.…”

Effects of total daily light integral from blue and broad-band red LEDs on flowering of saffron (Crocus sativus L.)

“…Saffron ( Crocus sativus L.), a member of the large family Iridaceae, is well known for its uses in spices, dyes, perfumes, and herbal medicine 1 – 5 . It has been now cultivated in Italy, Spain, Greece, Iran, India, and Afghan, etc 5 – 7 . After being introducing into China, saffron is mainly cultivated in the Yangtze River Delta with a special seasonal cultivation method.…”

“…However, the yearly yield of saffron stigma is very low, causing short supply and expensive price in the market 6 , 7 , 13 . There are two pivotal reasons: (1) Saffron only relies on clonal corm multiplication, and low reproduction rate leads to the difficulty of obtaining high quality corms for propagation 4 , 14 , (2) Saffron indoor cultivation mainly depends on artificial experiences, and thereby uncontrollable environment conditions further aggravate the phenomenon of less or even no flowering of corms and poor harvest of stigma.…”