Hi Piegirl,

First I have to ask, as I am curious. Are you in the US? Just where is NELin?

Colchicum are often referred to as fall blooming crocus, and yes, they are quite expensive. $3.50 on up here

There are fall blooming crocus, crocus sativus, that are often fairly cheap. HERE an on line vendor 'had' them 10 bulbs for just $7.95.

Might they be Crocus Sativus?

Sue

Here is a link that might be useful: Google images crocus sativus-different colors.

Sue - this is a strong possibility. The foliage does stay green year around. The colors shown on Goggle were close. We'll see what they do this spring! Or I could be growing my own saffron which would be really wonderful. Think I will dig up the small clump, divide and see what happens. Thank you - piegirl

Think I will dig up the small clump, divide and see what happens.
If possible, take a pic of the bulbs along with something to compare them to size wise...like a coin, or a ruler. The sativus bulbs are a lot smaller than the Colchicum.

I bought some crocus zonatus last fall via a coop and got them for just 20 cents each.

Here is a link that might be useful: Crocus zonatus.