May 2024 issue

Volume 69, Issue 5

Saffron is the most expensive spice in the world because of the laborious hand-harvesting and processing it requires. New research in Agrosystems, Geosciences & Environment comprehensively evaluates the many environmental and climate factors impacting saffron yield in Iran, and researchers and farmers in North America are testing how well the spice can be grown in atypical climates. Cover photo: Researchers Margaret Skinner (left) and Arash Ghalehgolabbehbahani (right) began growing saffron at the University of Vermont with hopes it could become an economically viable crop for New England's small, diversified growers. Photo by Ian Thomas Jansen-Lonnquist.