Source: EATING WELL, 1/3/22


On a brisk morning in late October, wisps of snow and brittle leaves scuttle across the hillside at Calabash Gardens in Wells River, Vermont. In the semi-frozen field, in an acre of cultivated ground surrounded by a tall deer fence, delicate purple Crocus sativus blossoms quiver in the stark landscape like the wings of exotic moths. Bend down and you can see three bright red stigma—the female parts of a flower—protruding from the center of each small, goblet-shaped bloom. This ephemeral bit of botany is saffron, the most expensive spice in the world. Bundled against the cold,

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