Featured Plant - Iceland Poppies
Friday November 28, 2008
Way back when I asked readers to recommend perennial plants for novice gardeners, Coline, who gardens in Calgary Alberta Canada (Zone 3), recommended Icelandic Poppies. I still find it fascinating when I see such a paper thin, delicate flower growing and thriving in such harsh conditions. I couldn’t do it. Iceland Poppies are carefree self-seeders and once you plant them, you’ll soon have them popping up all through your garden and walkways. They never seem to get out of hand though, and pulling out the strays is easy enough to do. If you don’t yet have any in your garden, the time to scattered seed is either in the fall or in the spring, before the last frost. They like a good winter chill.
Photo: © Marie Iannotti (2008) licensed to About.com, Inc.
Comments
Iceland poppies are one of my favorites, growing through the winter here and dying in hot weather. I grow both Iceland and California poppies. The California poppies last much longer and reseed here, but not the Iceland.
Two Kinds of Poppies in my Garden
Poppy Seedlings in my Garden
I’m confused. The photo is of California poppy (Eschschilzia californica) which grows as described. The term Iceland poppy is usually used to refer to Papaver nudicaule - which is short lived and not particularly easy to grow in my experience. I have never had them self sow. Enjoy your blog very much. AJ
I mean Eschscholzia. AJ
California poppies are the usually orange ones with finely dissected bluish foliage. Iceland poppies have flat leaves with fingerlike dissection. The petals of Iceland poppies are more fragile appearing and come in citrus colors, pale pink as well as bright orange.
Another way to distinguish which are which is that P. eschsholzia has long pods that develop following the shedding of petals. The pods pop and split and throw coarse seeds everywhere, easily reseeding.
Iceland poppies have more prominent centers and form rounded pods similar to opium poppies, but much, much smaller. The seeds are very fine. Iceland poppies grow in winter here and bloom in earliest spring.
I hope my URL shows up, there are photos of both kinds of poppies on my page.
Thank you both ADJ and Nell Jean. I guess I answered my own question about the importance of Latin names. I’ve changed the photo, for anyone logging in after these comments. The close-up of a white blossom is, I believe, an Iceland poppy.
I suspect their ability to self-sow has something to do with the climate and growing conditions. When there’s a really hot, dry summer, they tend to fade away before there’s a chance to drop some seed to over-winter. But I’m such a manic weeder in the spring, not much is allowed to self-sow in my garden any more.
Thanks for catching it and for the great descriptions and photos.
I’ve NEVER had any luck with any poppies, perennial or annual, planted or sown. I’ve tried all kinds of different soils, exposures, ways of planting … nothing works. What am I doing wrong? I love poppies of all kinds and keep trying in the hope that at least one will ‘take’ so they will self-sow, but so far no luck. My zone is Zone 4. Thanks for any help!
Genie, do you toss the seed out in early spring, while it’s still cold? Poppy seeds generally need some light to germinate, so just scatter them, don’t cover them with soil. And they need to be kept moist, especially since they aren’t covered. Getting them started is the hard part. Once you have them and they’re happy, they generally spread.