Frequently asked questions
At Sativus.com, we are passionate about Crocus sativus and dedicated to providing high-quality saffron bulbs for growers of all levels. Whether you’re a first-time gardener or an experienced cultivator, we know you may have questions about growing, harvesting, and storing saffron.
This FAQ page is designed to give you clear, expert answers on everything from planting techniques and soil requirements to flowering cycles and saffron processing. Our goal is to help you achieve a successful harvest and enjoy the rewarding process of growing your own saffron.
If you don’t find the answer you’re looking for, feel free to contact us—we’re always happy to help!
What is the difference between organic and non-organic bulbs?
The difference between organic and non-organic corms is that organic corms are being cultivated completely organically, without the use of any chemical plant protection products.
These corms will come with a European organic certificate. Click here to view our organic certificate.
The non-organic corms are being cultivated in a sustainable manner, with a minimum use of chemical crop protection.
What is the difference between the different bulb sizes?
The difference between the different bulbs sizes is that the bigger bulbs will bloom better and will give more flowers in the first year after planting. Also larger bulbs are developing better and multiply faster than smaller bulbs.
Bulbs of size 7/8 will give little or no flowering in the first year of planting, whereby the flowering percentage of bulbs of size 8/9 lies between 40 and 80 percent.
Saffron bulbs of size 9/10 give 1 or 2 flowers per bulb in the first year, bulbs of size 10/11 about 2 to 3 flowers per bulb and Crocus sativus bulbs of size 11/+, 3 or more flowers per bulb.
The flowering rate will increase in the following years due to their multiplication and growth.
What do "sustainable" grown bulbs mean?
The fact that our bulbs are grown on a sustainable manner means that, during the cultivation of our saffron bulbs, we reduced the use of chemical crop protection to a minimum.
This resulted in the fact that we stopped using chemical soil fumigation, we don't apply any pesticides containing the so-called neonicotinoids and the herbicide "Roundup" is no longer used on our fields.
Also we try to improve and maintain the soil quality and soil organisms of our land by using quality compost and other soil improvers.
What are neonicotinoids?
Neonicotinoids are certain substances related to nicotine, which are used in a number of systemic pesticides and biocides. The use of these agents has been associated by several researchers worldwide with increased bee mortality.
Why is it better not to use Roundup?
Independent scientific research has shown that the herbicide Roundup, and especially the active ingredient of this product "glyphosate", plays a role in the development of cancer and potentially hormone disrupting. Also this herbicide is extremely bad for the soil in which the bulbs are grown because the soil biology is strongly disrupted by glyphosate.
Why are the saffron bulbs in your web shop cheaper than in many other shops?
The crocus Sativus bulbs we sell are grown by ourselves, so you are buying bulbs directly from the grower without the intervention of wholesalers. Since we grow the crocus bulbs on a large scale we can offer them (much) cheaper than many other suppliers.
Why can't you deliver saffron bulbs before July 20?
Our saffron bulbs are being uprooted every year in late June / early July.
Once uprooted, we wash and dry them and give them a proper temperature treatment. After this treatment, the bulbs are being calibrated in different sizes and prepared for our sales.
This whole process needs to be done carefully to guarantee our customers the best quality of crocus Sativus bulbs and saffron.
When is the best time to plant your bulbs?
The Best time to plant our saffron bulbs is from mid-August to the end of September. Bulbs planted before the end of September will flower in late October / early November.
How many saffron bulbs can I plant per m2?
The quantity of bulbs that you can plant per m2 depends on the bulb size.
With bulbs of size 7/8 you can plant about 60 to 70 bulbs per m2, bulbs of size 8/9, 50 to 60 bulbs per m2 and with bulbs of size 9/10, 40 to 50 bulbs per m2.
What does the size of your bulbs mean?
The size of our bulbs is given in centimeter of the circumference of the bulbs. For example, bulbs of size 9/10 have a circumference between 9 and 10 centimeters.
The diameter of our bulbs can be easily calculated by dividing the circumference of the bulbs by Pi (Pi ≈ 3,14).
So bulbs of size 9/10 have a diameter between 9/3,14 ≈ 2,86 and 10/3,14 ≈ 3,18 centimeters.
What is the price of saffron per kg?
It is very difficult to give you a fixed price of saffron because it highly dependents on the supply and demand, the quality and its origin.
It is often argued that the price of 1 kg of saffron lies around € 30,000. This price actually just applies to the saffron which is offered in small quantities. For example, you can buy saffron in a bag of 50 mg at the supermarket for € 1.25. Translated to 1 kg it makes a total of € 25,000 per kg.
It should be said that the quality of the saffron that you can buy at the supermarket is worse than the more expensive saffron sold in specialty stores.
Is it profitable to cultivate saffron?
It is certainly profitable to grow your own saffron because the saffron cultivation is a perennial crop. The bulbs you buy from us, multiply themselves each year in the ground, and therefore you can harvest your own saffron up to 4 - 5 years in a row in which the harvest increases every year. After this period you can dig up the bulbs and replant them again on another piece of land.
In this way you only need to buy bulbs one time in order to harvest saffron for many years.
Payment methods
Payment Methods
You can pay your purchases at sativus.com simple and safe with the following payment methods:
Payment by PayPal (free)
PayPal is an online payment service that allows you to pay your purchases at sativus.com and many other online stores through your email address. PayPal already has over 100 million accounts. All PayPal members benefit from practical, fast and secure payments. You too can easily join PayPal by clicking the Sign Up button on the homepage of PayPal.
How does it work?
During your registration at PayPal, you can link your bank account or credit card directly to your PayPal account. In this way your bank account- or credit card details will no longer be necessary when making a payment through PayPal. In order to send a payment to another PayPal user, you will only need to know the PayPal e-mail address of the recipient. After the acceptance of a payment, PayPal charges the amount automatically from your bank account or credit card.
Payment by credit card (free)
We accept the following credit cards: Master Card , Visa Card , Visa Electron, American Express, Diners Club, Carte Bleue and Postepay. A credit card payment is done through a secure SSL server that sends your data encrypted. Your data will be verified directly with the credit card company that approves your payment after a few seconds.
What happens when my payment is being rejected?
It may happen that your credit card payment is rejected, for example, when the limit of your credit card is reached. In that case you will get the opportunity to choose a different payment method, or to try again.
How is my data secured?
All your data, including your credit card number and login code are protected by SSL. This is a strong form of encryption, which prevents that malicious people will be able use your data.
Payment by Mister Cash (free)
Bancontact / Mister Cash is the online payment system developed by all banks in Belgium and is the most accepted online payment method in Belgium. All Belgian customers using internet banking, can use Bancontact / Mister Cash. They can pay for their purchases directly in their familiar banking environment.
Payment by Ideal (free)
With iDEAL is a Dutch payment system which allows customers to pay for their online purchases. This system links you directly to your Internet banking account during the checkout of an online purchase. To make use of iDEAL, you don't have to register, create an account or download any files. If you are using online banking at ABN AMRO, ASN Bank, Fortis, Friesland Bank, ING Bank, Rabobank, RBS or SNS Bank, you will be able to pay by iDEAL. With iDEAL you are able to pay quickly and easily in the familiar online banking environment of your own bank.
Payment by SOFORT (free)
SOFORT Banking is an online direct payment method and works on the basis of the tried-and-tested online banking and can be used by consumers owning an account for Internet banking in one of the following countries: Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Hungary, Poland, Italy, Spain, France and the United Kingdom.
The big advantage is: You don't need to register or open a virtual account, known as a wallet. It is an immediate and direct transfer of funds. Customers who select SOFORT Banking as their preferred method of payment for a purchase in our shop will be directed straight to the secure sofort.com payment form. All transfer data is carried over automatically so that you only need to enter your bank's sort code along with your usual online banking login details and finally the confirmation code in order to authorise the transfer.
Payment by international bank transfer, IBAN (free)
If you prefer to pay your purchase by bank transfer this will also be possible. After you have placed your order with us, you will receive an invoice with the payment details by email. You can transfer the total amount of the invoice directly to our bank account.
Our bank details are:
Account name: V.O.F.Bloembollenbedrijf J.C.Koot
IBAN: NL86 RABO 0310 9959 30
BIC: RABONL2U
Bank: Rabobank
FAQ
-Will It be possible to pay by PIN?
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Unfortunately, it is not possible to pay your order by means of a PIN transaction.
-Will it be possible to pay cash?
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Only if you choose to pick up your order with us, it will be possible to pay cash.
-Will It be possible for private customers to pay after receiving their order?
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It's only possible to pay your order afterwards if that's agreed with us in writing.
(Note: All prices noted in our shop include sales tax, except for the prices shown in the category "orders over 2,500 bulbs.")
Worldwide shipping
Do we also ship saffron bulbs to your country?
In addition to delivery to private and business customers throughout Europe, we can also supply our Crocus sativus bulbs to customers in the rest of the world.
Because there is free movement of goods in the European Union, we can deliver our bulbs to customers within the EU without restriction. However, if we supply our bulbs to countries outside the EU, we unfortunately have to deal with the phytosanitary requirements that the various countries impose on the supply of flower bulbs.
The most important requirement for a supply to countries outside the EU is that the bulbs are provided with a phytosanitary certificate. This certificate is proof that the bulbs meet the phytosanitary requirements of the receiving country.
To obtain this certificate, the Dutch Flower Bulb Inspection Service, the BKD, carries out a special export inspection before the batch of saffron bulbs is transported. If everything is in order and no irregularities have been detected, this shipment will receive its certificate that is only valid for the customer and the country where the shipment is sent.
Regrettably, obtaining the phytosanitary certificate incurs costs. The cost of obtaining the certificate is 185 euros, regardless of the size of the shipment of Crocus sativus bulbs.
However, there are two countries outside the European Union for which a phytosanitary certificate is not required. These countries are Switzerland and Liechtenstein. Because these countries have entered into an agreement with the EU, the phytosanitary certificate is no longer required in the mutual trade of flower bulbs
Other possibly required export documents that may be needed to import the bulbs are:
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EUR.1 document
The European Union has concluded trade agreements with a number of countries and groups of countries. As a result, it is possible that a discount or exemption on import duties may be granted when importing flower bulbs. To benefit from this discount or exemption, a EUR.1 document is required.
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Certificate of origin
A Certificate of Origin is proof of where the saffron bulbs have been produced. In our case this will be The Netherlands.
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Import Permit
In some countries an import permit is required to be able to import Crocus sativus bulbs. This permit can in many cases be applied for at the Ministry of Agriculture or at the phytosanitary inspection service of the country concerned.
With the exception of the import permit, which must be requested by the importer itself, we can supply all necessary documents for the import of Crocus sativus bulbs against payment.
If you do not know exactly which documents are needed to import our bulbs, it is advisable to contact the phytosanitary service of your country in advance. They can tell you exactly what you will need when importing flower bulbs.
We have also compiled a handy table for you to see at a glance whether saffron cultivation is suitable for the climate in your country, whether we export to your country and whether a phytosanitary certificate and import permit is required. This table can be found at the bottom of this page.
Southern hemisphere
If desired, we also send our Crocus sativus bulbs to countries that are located in the southern hemisphere.
Because the summer and winter months are opposite to those in Europe and therefore also the cultivation cycle of saffron is the other way around, the saffron bulbs should be planted there in January or February instead of August. The flowering of the bulbs that are cultivated in the Southern Hemisphere is around April.
By means of a special temperature treatment we are able to prepare our saffron bulbs for cultivation in the southern hemisphere. These bulbs can be delivered in December or January so that they can be planted immediately.
If you are interested in starting a saffron cultivation in the southern hemisphere and if you want to use our bulbs, you have to take into account that the bulbs should be reserved in July or August. We can then start the preparation in time to guarantee you a good quality Crocus sativus.
Feel free to contact us for more information about the possibilities of a delivery in the southern hemisphere.
Organic certification
Organic certification
The organic crocus Sativus bulbs that we sell in our webshop are being cultivated completely organically, without the use of any chemical plant protection products or chemical fertilizers.
The cultivation of these organic bulbs as well as the sorting and packaging process is being controlled by Skal Biocontrole.
Skal Biocontrole is designated by the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs as the Control Authority responsible for the inspection and certification of organic companies in the Netherlands.
The inspection and certification of Skal Biocontrol is performed in accordance with the European Regulations: (EC) Nr. 834/2007, (EC) Nr. 889/2008 and (EC) Nr. 1235/2008.
Our organic saffron bulbs will come with an European organic certificate which can also be downloaded from our website. Click here to view our organic certificate.
Can't find the answer you're looking for?
No problem! We are happy to help. Contact us trough phone: +31(0)624590389 or send us an email at info@sativus.com
