Sternbergia lutea "Autumn Daffodil"

Sternbergia lutea goes by many different common names, to include Autumn Crocus, Autumn Daffodil, Winter Daffodil, Southern Fall Crocus, and some say buttercups. Open, golden cupped blooms appear in later summer early fall about 3 inches off the ground. Carpets of yellow are soon found popping up in what seemed like completely dormant gardens and abandoned lots.
A native of Greece, it is one of the first flower bulbs grown in America. It is a popular bulb for rock gardens with its low blooming habit and foliage that stays fairly well maintained. The 'Sternbergia' enjoys good drainage and slighly gravelly soil. Some areas where it can be found naturalized would be the heavy black land soils that tend to dry out and crack during the summer months. It has performed well for the Southern Bulb Company in slightly acidic sandy loam to slightly alkaline clay soils. Hard freezes in Zone 7 and down can be damaging, but it has been seen to perform well in the Zone 10 regions of Texas. For some, the yellow crocus-like bloom it produces in the fall is the closest they will ever come to a crocus in their garden.

A Crocus for the South