Crocus thomasii

Crocus thomasii
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Monocots
Order:	Asparagales
Family:	Iridaceae
Genus:	Crocus
Species:	C. thomasii
Binomial name
Crocus thomasii Ten.
Synonyms
Crocus thomasianusHerb. Crocus visianicusHerb.

Crocus thomasii is a species of flowering plant in the genus Crocus of the family Iridaceae. It is a cormous perennial native from southern Italy to Croatia.

In the 19th century around Taranto, South Italy, Crocus thomasii stigmas were harvested from the wild and used to flavour dishes as a kind of wild saffron. ^[1] It is a possible ancestor of the domesticated saffron crocus, Crocus sativus. ^{[2] [3]}

References

1. Maw, George (1886). A Monograph of the Genus Crocus. Soho Square, London: Dulau and Co. p. 87. Retrieved 6 April 2024.
2. Grilli Caiola 2003, p. 1.
3. Negbi 1999, p. 28.

Sources

• Grilli Caiola, M. (2003), "Saffron Reproductive Biology", Acta Horticulturae, 650 (650), ISHS: 25–37, doi:10.17660/ActaHortic.2004.650.1, S2CID   89990377
• Negbi, M., ed. (1999), Saffron: Crocus sativus L., CRC Press, ISBN   978-90-5702-394-1