Becoming Crocus

Crocus spp. 

There are  over 90 species of crocus, members of the  iris family. Two often seen in the spring are crocus vernus  (spring crocus)  and  crocus chrysanthus (snow crocus).

Have you ever wondered how the crocus got his name? There are several Greek myths that attempt to tell  the story.

On myth explains that Crocus was a mere mortal  who was madly in love  with  the  Greek messenger god Hermes. They were both very  athletic, and spent many afternoons together, enjoying the most popular games  of the  times, including running, jumping , boxing, wrestling and chariot racing.  One tragic day, they  were throwing discus, when Hermes accidentally hit Crocus in the head, delivering  a fatal blow. Hermes was understandably over wrought with grief and turned Crocus into a flower. That’s not quite as understandable. Anyway, a few drops of blood from Crocus’s wound dripped into  the center of  the flower. If you look closely, you might see them. 

Another story, again pairing the mortal Crocus with Hermes the god, has them on a river bank ,so caught up in passionate  pleasures that the grassy banks literally exploded with crocus.  Wow! From that  time forward the delicate spring flowers have been associated with the power to create love. Worth noting: in this version no one died! I love happy endings, and they are rather rare in Greek mythology.

Another tragic ending finds Crocus madly in love with Smilax, a dryad nymph. For those of  you who don’t know what a dryad  nymph is (I didn’t either, I had to  look it up the first time I heard it), it’s the  spirit of a tree, disguised as a beautiful young woman. Well, Crocus was smitten, but later heart broken. We’re  not sure why. 

One explanation is Smilax loved  him as well, but  since he was a mortal, they  couldn’t be  together. It’s that age old story of one lover not being good enough for the other.  Another version is she rejected him. Either way, he was inconsolable, The gods took pity on him and turned him into a flower so he would no longer suffer from grief. 

Another ending involves the messenger god again. This ending states that Hermes was so anguished over the loss of his friend that he joined with Chloris, the Greek goddess of flowers, to  change Crocus into  a flower and Smilax into a yew tree. 

The motivation for the plant choices isn’t clear. One explanation is Crocus and Smilax were very much in love and they turned them into plants so they could be together for eternity, growing side by side.I’ve never associated yews with crocus. I’ll pay more attention the next  time I see them in bloom. Another  version is Smilax rejected him, and turning her into a poisonous tree was done as revenge.  

Thoughts?