11 research outputs found
Saffron, an alternative crop for sustainable agricultural systems. A review
Saffron (Crocus sativus L.) is an autumnal flowering geophite whose dried stigmas, well
known for their aromatic and colouring power, have been used since immemorial time
as a spice in human nutrition, for medicinal purposes and as a dye.
Many doubts remain on its origin; it was probably selected and domesticated
in Crete during the Late Bronze Age. Saffron is an autotriploid geophyte
species, self- and out-sterile and mostly male-sterile and therefore unable
to produce seed, that reproduces by means of corms. Furthermore, it has a
reverse biological cycle compared with the majority of cultivated and
spontaneous plants: flowering first in October-November, then vegetative
development until May, which means that the vegetative development is not
directly important for production of stigmas, but for the production of new
corms. Due to its unique biological, physiological and agronomic traits,
saffron is able to exploit marginal land and to be included in low-input
cropping systems, representing an alternative viable crop for sustainable
agriculture. Notwithstanding this great potential and the considerable
increase in new generation consumer demand for saffron, the future of the
plant is still uncertain. Indeed, the main obstacles to saffron production
are: (1) the limited areas of cultivation in countries where it is
traditionally grown, (2) the great amount of sophisticated spice, (3)
management techniques executed by hand, and (4) the very high price of the
spice. Here we review the main biological, genetic and ecological traits
associated with agronomic management techniques of saffron in relation to
environmental conditions. Colour, taste and aroma are the essential features
on which the quality of saffron stigmas is founded. In turn, these aspects
are strictly connected with the biomolecular composition of the stigmas,
namely, the carotenoids and their derivatives. With this in mind, the
biosynthetic pathway that leads to the formation of saffron secondary
metabolites and their abundance in the spice is presented, together with the
biomedical properties commonly associated with saffron. Furthermore, a
detailed overview of the more recent instrumental methods to assess the
quality of saffron, strictly from a chemical point of view, will be
discussed