When to plant crocuses in Frankfurt: 18 October – end of December

In Frankfurt, crocus: plant from 18 October to the end of December. For planting stock, the places nearby include Waldladen (farm shop, 5 km) and Dottenfelderhof Laden (farm shop, 11 km); addresses and opening hours are below.

Bulbs are best planted early in the window: late-planted bulbs may flower later or less well. Late planting works only while the soil can be dug. Mulch after planting.

The average daily temperature here stays above 0 °C all winter, and at least three months average 7 °C or less: our rule of thumb for the winter cold spring bulbs need. Sources: Iowa State University Extension, Wisconsin Horticulture Extension, UNH Extension, RHS.

Crocus in Frankfurt: soil, season and weather

No month averages below 0 °C at night; the coldest nights, in January, average 0.1 °C.

Planting	18 October – end of December
First autumn frost	17 November
Coldest nights	January, 0.1 °C
Soil back at 1 °C in spring	already in the first week of January
Daylight	10:38 on 18 October
Daylight at the winter solstice	8:03

The same dates in Frankfurt hold for Garlic, Tulip, Daffodil and Hyacinth.

Crocus in Frankfurt: depth, winter cold, pests and pets

Plant Dutch crocuses (Crocus vernus) about 12 cm deep and 9 cm apart; smaller species go 7–10 cm deep (RHS).

In Frankfurt the average daily temperature stays at 10 °C or lower for about 25 weeks a year (our estimate from ten years of monthly weather). For this bulb Wisconsin Horticulture Extension gives a cold period of 15–17 weeks at about 2–10 °C. The winter here gives that in the ground, so the bulbs need no pre-chilling.

Crocuses multiply on their own (they naturalise); in a lawn, hold off mowing until their leaves die back (RHS).

Birds, squirrels and rodents damage crocuses; planting under metal mesh may reduce losses (RHS). Spring crocus gives dogs and cats vomiting and diarrhoea; do not confuse it with autumn crocus (Colchicum), which is very toxic (Pet Poison Helpline).

Sources: RHS, Wisconsin Horticulture Extension, Pet Poison Helpline.

Crocus in nearby cities

Around Frankfurt, Stuttgart is 9 days earlier and Wiesbaden 6 days later.

City	Distance	Date	Difference
Wiesbaden	32 km	24 October – end of December	6 days later
Karlsruhe	124 km	20 October – end of December	2 days later
Stuttgart	152 km	9 October – end of December	9 days earlier
Cologne	153 km	21 October – end of December	3 days later
Dortmund	177 km	17 October – end of December	1 day earlier
Düsseldorf	183 km	22 October – end of December	4 days later

Where to buy crocus for planting in Frankfurt

Planting stock goes into the ground from 18 October to the end of December; buy it before that. Within 15 km of Frankfurt OpenStreetMap lists 32 garden centres, 1 farm-supply shop, 4 plant nurseries, 44 markets and 40 farm shops (collected 7 October 2026).

Hof Steup — farm shop
Gräbenwiesen 1, 63477 Maintal · Tue–Thu 13:30–17:30; Fri 09:30–17:30; Sat 09:30–17:00; Sun, public holidays 12:00–17:00 · 14 km · hof-steup.de
Hofgut Hanstein — farm shop
Alt Wachenbuchen 13, 63477 Maintal · Fri 09:00–11:30, 15:00–17:00; Sat 09:00–12:30; public holidays closed · 14 km · hofgut-hanstein.de
Margarethenhof — farm shop
Frankfurter Straße 16, 61184 Karben · Mon–Fri 08:00–19:00; Sat 08:00–15:00 · 14 km · margarethenhof.de
Bioland MagerHof — farm shop
Ulmenweg 50, 61184 Karben · Mon, Tue, Thu, Fri 09:00–13:00, 15:00–19:00 · 15 km · bioland-magerhof.de
Hofladen Köppen — farm shop
Bahnhofstraße 24, 63303 Dreieich-Offenthal · Tue–Fri 10:00–13:00, Wed–Fri 15:00–18:30 · 15 km · hofladenkoeppen.de
Dottenfelderhof Laden — farm shop
Dottenfelder Hof, 61118 Bad Vilbel · Mon–Sat 08:00–19:00; public holidays closed · 11 km · dottenfelderhof.de
Waldladen — farm shop · sells: meat, honey
Jan–Sept Tue, Thu 15:00–18:00; Oct–Dec Tue, Thu 15:00–18:00, Sat[1, 3] 09:00–13:00 · 5 km · stadtwaldhaus-frankfurt.de
Franz Pfeiffer Landesprodukte — farm supply
14 km · pfeiffer-landhandel.de

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