Papaver rhoeas 'Diane's Mix'
(Shirley Poppy)
4,000 seeds $3.25
Papaver rhoeas is a June-blooming, annual poppy. This is my own special mix of varieties I've collected over many years. It includes single and double flowers in shades of pink, salmon, red, orange, white and mauve. Many of the blooms are bicolored or picoteed.
Papaver rhoeas is a wonderful companion plant for roses. It also looks great with blue flowers like Campanula 'Telham Beauty', Centaurea 'Blue Boy' and Nigella 'Miss Jekyll Blue'.
Every year, I pull up any plants that bloom with single, scarlet-red flowers. If these are not removed to prevent cross-pollination, eventually they will take over the mix, and most of the double blooms in other colors will die out. There will always be a few plants each year that revert to the single red, which is the earliest one to bloom. The more intricate varieties bloom later.
Papaver rhoeas is easy to grow. It self sows nicely in my zone 5 garden. Also known as Shirley Poppy. Deer resistant.
height 30"
Sowing Papaver rhoeas Seeds
Sow poppy seeds outdoors in early spring, or fall in mild winter areas. Sow on the surface. For good coverage, mix the seeds with sand before sowing. Full sun.
