Poppy / Papaver

Poppy Description

Poppies have been very popular and old hardy annual, and biennial, flowering plant with gardeners for many years. Bright and showy the poppy can be accommodated in almost any flower garden. Most frequently seen in vivid red varieties the poppy is available in other colours that include white, cream, yellow, orange and pink.

Poppies have been cultivated as ornamental and decorative flowers going back to ancient Mesopotamia 7,000 years ago. Today florists still value the poppy as a a cut flower for floral arrangements.

Cultivation of Poppy Plants

Poppy seeds of biennials should be sown in early summer but must be protected under cloches during the winter. In the spring thin out the seedlings to about 40cm.

Annual poppies seeds should be planted in their permanent flowering positions in mid spring. The young plants should be thinned out to about 30cm apart from each other.

Deadheading will prolong the flowering season and will prevent self-seeding. Poppies do not transplant well.

Poppy Pests and Diseases

Poppies are usually trouble-free however they can be susceptible to mildew on the leaves, manifesting itself as yellow spotting.