No cottage garden or field margin would be complete without poppies which announce the summer with their cheerful abundant blooms. Low maintenance and fast flowering, they easily reseed for flowers year on year and are a great beginner’s flower to save seed from.
Seed Sowing
Poppies are annuals that are best directly sown, preferably in the autumn. Just scatter the seeds by hand over your weed free seedbed or use shallow drills. Sow seeds thinly and cover with a thin layer of soil or sand. Grow in well drained, fertile soil in full sun.
Transplanting
Unless stated on the packet, poppies are best sown directly in the ground. Poppies benefit from some space, so it’s good to thin them to 20cm between plants once they are established, but this is not essential.
Plant Care
Keep the area weed-free and watered during hot spells. You can mulch around the plants to keep in moisture and prevent weeds. Deadhead to prolong flowering.
Challenges
Generally pest and disease-free, things to look out for are aphids and downy or powdery mildew.
Harvest
Pick the flowers often to encourage more flowers to form; they should keep flowering well into the autumn. Ideally harvest the flowers in the morning when temperatures are low and plant water content is high. Plants will arrange better if left to sit in water for a few hours after cutting.
It is worth remembering that poppies have a very short vase life of 3-5 days.
Poppy seedheads are highly decorative and make a wonderful addition to a dry flower arrangement. To dry, cut stems and hang upside down in bunches in a cool, dark and well ventilated space.
Culinary Ideas And Uses
Only the seeds from Poppy Somniferum are edible.
Seed Saving
Poppies will self seed in situ if left to flower and set seed. To harvest the seeds wait until the heads are almost completely dry on the plant and starting to open. Harvest individual heads and shake over a sheet to release and collect the seeds.
Store in a cool dark place; seeds should remain viable for around 3 years.
Most popular Poppy
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Poppy – Corn / Field Poppy (Organic)
£1.98 Add to basketPoppy – Corn / Field Poppy (Organic)
Cheerful red flowers announcing the summer, great for pollinating insects. The classic field poppies are a favourite in gardens and fields in almost every part of the world. Single, cup-shaped flowers with brilliant red petals resembling crepe paper, poppy blossoms never disappoint! Low maintenance and fast flowering, they re-seed easily and come back year after year.
Flowering from June through to September, they’re great in a meadow or wildflower garden. Plant them anywhere you want a bright splash of colour that will attract bees and other pollinating flowers.
(Approximate seed count – 1350)
£1.98 -
Poppy – Amazing Grey (Organic)
£2.10 Add to basketPoppy – Amazing Grey (Organic)
Mesmerising poppies with semi-doubled petals textured like vintage silk in stylish tones of stormy grey, delicate mauve and silvery white. These charismatic poppies float gracefully upon delicate stems providing a dreamy romantic atmosphere to your borders with a profusion of successional flowers. Whilst each flower is short lived, the statuesque seed pods can be admired long after the petals have scattered like confetti.
(Approximate seed count – 500)£2.10 -
Poppy – Mother of Pearl (Organic)
£2.10 Add to basketPoppy – Mother of Pearl (Organic)
A beautiful mixed variety producing blooms of various dusty shades of plum, pink and white. This is a really eye catching variety, with such delicate colour shades. Some white with raspberry veining, some dusty pink, pale plum and white, on long elegant stems.
Vase life 3-4 days – seer stem ends for 10 seconds.
(Approximate seed count – 500)
£2.10 -
Poppy – Hungarian Blue (Organic)
£2.20 Add to basketPoppy – Hungarian Blue (Organic)
An old variety with delicate purple silky flowers and large seed pods. This variety was traditionally grown for it’s delicious and nutritious seeds, often used in baking.
However it’s a true multipurpose crop producing beautiful flowers and dried seed heads which make a striking addition to flower arrangements.
(Approximate seed count – 500)£2.20
