Document Type : Research Paper
Authors
1
1- Head of the saffron desk of the Khorasan Razavi Agricultural Jihad Organization, Iran
2
Associated Professor, Department of Agronomy, Faculty of Agriculture, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad
3
3- Ph.D. Student of Agrotechnology–Crop Physiology, Department of Agrotechnology, Faculty of Agriculture, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Iran
10.22048/jsat.2026.566599.1583
Abstract
Considering the impact of climatic parameters, particularly temperature and precipitation, on the growth, yield, and quality of saffron, this study aimed to investigate the flower and stigma yield along with some quantitative traits of saffron under the influence of climatic factors and agricultural management in ten counties of Khorasan Razavi Province (including Bajestan, Bakharz, Bardaskan, Gonabad, Quchan, Mashhad, Mahvalat, Taybad, Torbat-e Heydarieh, and Zaveh) through a questionnaire survey conducted over two years (2022 and 2023). The studied traits included the time to flowering onset, duration of flowering, flower yield, stigma yield, and stigma harvest index. Cluster analysis was performed for treatment grouping. The results indicated that the simple effects of farm age, number of irrigations, summer irrigation, climate, year, and the interaction between climate and year were significant (p ≤ 0.05) for most flowering indices. The duration of flowering ranged from 12.2 to 17.5 days in 2022 and from 8.2 to 12.1 days in 2023. The longest flowering duration in both years was recorded in Zaveh and Bakharz, while Bajestan exhibited the shortest duration. The greatest and least reduction in flowering duration from the first to the second year was observed in Taybad and Zaveh, respectively. The flower yield ranged from 278.5 to 799.95 kg/ha in 2022 and from 152.1 to 360.8 kg/ha in 2023; in both years, Taybad and Bardaskan had the highest and lowest yields, respectively. The reduction in flower yield from the first to the second year was calculated to be between 34% and 67%, with Zaveh and Bajestan showing the highest and lowest reductions, respectively. Correlation analysis between climatic parameters and saffron yield revealed a strong significant correlation between yield and the average temperature in August as well as total precipitation in Febuary. As the average temperature in August increased, the yield decreased; conversely, an increase in Febuary precipitation improved yield. Since the replenishment period for photosynthetic materials occurs in daughter corms during winter, rainfall during the growing stage in winter (such as in Febuary) is crucial. All flowering indices were higher in counties with cooler climates compared to those with warmer climates. Furthermore, the decline in flower and stigma yield in the second year was less pronounced in warmer counties due to lower cold damage. Overall, it is recommended to adopt ecological intensification strategies such as soil shading during hot summer months, planting large corms with hight density pre unit area, and reducing the exploitation period to mitigate the effects of climate change.
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