Cloth of gold

The cloth of gold crocus (Crocus angustifolius) is a small bulbous perennial in the family Iridaceae native to the Crimean Peninsula, the Caucasus, and nearby regions of southeastern Europe and southwestern Asia. Named for its brilliant golden-yellow flowers with distinctive bronze-purple exterior striping on the outer tepals, it is among the most ornamentally striking of the spring-flowering crocuses. The corms produce narrow, rush-like leaves with a white central stripe and solitary flowers on short stems at ground level in late winter to early spring, emerging before or with the leaves. In its native habitat, C. angustifolius grows on rocky slopes, dry grasslands, and open scrublands in the Crimean mountains and Caucasian foothills, where it is adapted to cold winters and warm, dry summers. The species has been cultivated in European gardens since at least the 16th century and is widely grown as an ornamental bulb. Natural populations may face pressure from overcollection for the horticultural trade and from habitat disturbance in parts of its native range in the Black Sea region.