Description
This is a true and very even clone of C. cartwrightianus selected for its small but amazingly deep-violet, autumnal flowers which are striped and veined with a darker violet. In the centre is a darker purple-violet patch around which sit white anthers and greatly elongated, vivid red styles. There is nothing subtle about this species anyway but in Anaïs, the colours hit you fairly and squarely between the eyes. The stunning colours are further enhanced by a strong fragrance of saffron from the noticeably long styles.
C. cartwrightianus is without a doubt the best saffron Crocus and the best producer of saffron for outside in the UK though we find that it does better still when potted and grown under glass.
A clonal selection made from plants raised from 1976 seed which in turn is thought to be from Zdenek Pilous, in what is now the Czech republic, however we are still trying to confirm this.
Crocus cartwrightianus Anaïs