Wild saffron (Crocus cambessedesii.) is easily identifiable just by its leaves because they are very long and narrow, they are very dark green but have a whitish line running from top to bottom.

 

 

 

Crocus cambessedesii.

Family: Iridaceae.
Genus: Crocus.
Distributed over the islands: Mallorca and Menorca.
Status: Endemic.
IUCN Category: Little concern.
Vital Forms: Geophytes.

 

 

Catalan common name: Safrà bord.
Spanish common name: Azafrán.
Flowering time: September. October. November. December.
Habitat: rocky shores, rocky areas and crevices of rocks at higher altitudes.


 

Characteristics:

The flowers bloom at the end of autumn at the same time as the yearly leaves grow; these flowers, one to each plant, are white but lined with violet stripes on the side outside the tepals.

 

This is an endemism of Mallorca and Menorca which preferentially lives in the cracks between rocks in coastal and mountain areas.