(Papaver nudicaule ‘Iceland’)

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Iceland Poppy is a short-lived cool-weather perennial flower that is native to northeastern Asia and eastern Europe but is commonly grown throughout the United States as an annual. When fully grown, this plant can stand 1-2 feet. It displays feather-like green leaves and aromatic four-petal cup-shaped flowers that range in various shades of apricot, gold, tangerine, and white. This plant can be grown in a container, attracts bees and butterflies, is resistant to deer, tolerates drought, is both edible and medicinal, self-sows, and is used as a cut flower!

  • General Information
  • Germination
  • Seedlings
  • Harvesting
  • Seed Saving
  • Culinary
  • Medicinal
  • Companion Planting
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​​Family: Papaveraceae

Genus: Papaver

Species: nudicaule

Variety: Iceland Poppy

Other Common Names: Arctic Poppy, Icelandic Poppy

Native to: Amur, Buryatiya, Chita, Irkutsk, Khabarovsk, Magadan, Primorye, Sakhalin, Yakutskiya.

Introduced into: Alaska, Argentina South, Greenland, Tibet.

Ease of Growing: Easy
​
Grown as: Annual/Biennial
 
Maturity (Bloom): May to June

Light: Full Sun

Water: Water seedlings occasionally, but decrease watering as the plants mature; poppies tolerate drought well and will only need watering in periods of extreme dryness. 

Soil Moisture: This plant tolerates most soils that drain well.

​Attracts Beneficial Insects: Yes. The flowers attract Bees and Butterflies and are resistant to Deer.
 
Containers?: Yes. Poppies grow well in containers, partly because they are drought tolerant. They add an airy aspect to pots, which gardeners usually pack with plants for eye-catching designs. Use them sparingly so they act as accents rather than focal points. Select large containers with drainage holes in the bottom or sides to prevent waterlogged soil. Fill the pot with a packaged potting mix, not garden soil. Garden soil, in addition to containing weed seeds, becomes very heavy when wet. You can sow seeds directly in the planter, but it is easier to arrange your design if you use transplants. Set the potted poppies and other plants on top of the soil before unpotting; rearrange them until the design suits you. Because many of the plants will not be mature or in flower when you do this, your imagination will need to fill in colors as well as the ultimate heights and spreads of your selections. Unpot the plants and set them in the container at the same level they were growing originally. Try to disturb the roots of the poppies as little as possible. Water the planting well. Water the containers as needed. In hot summer weather you may find yourself watering every day, depending on the plants you combine. 
​Deadhead spent blooms on all plants to keep the plants producing new flowers and to keep the planting attractive.

Height: 18”
 
Spacing: 10-12”

Sow Depth: 1/4"
 
Produces: feather-like lobed green leaves, and four petal cup-shaped flowers that bloom in colors ranging in apricot, gold, tangerine, and white.

USDA Grow Zone: 2-7

Toxicity: This plant is toxic to mammals, though the toxicity is low.
Direct sow in early spring, planting on the surface of the soil since this seed needs light to germinate. Keep the soil lightly moist until germination, which should occur within 10-14 days. Do not attempt to move seedlings, since they resent having their roots disturbed. For an early start, start the seed indoors in peat pots 6-8 weeks before the last frost and plant outdoors.
Water seedlings occasionally until they become established. Mature plants tolerate drought well and grow well in dry or gravelly soil, though they also flourish in average soil. Do not attempt to move the plants, since they do not transplant well. A layer of mulch will help keep the soil cool, since this plant does not appreciate high heat. It is highly frost tolerant, and survives temperatures up to -20 degrees F. Deadhead flowers to extend the blooming season. This plant often self-sows, and is highly attractive to bees, butterflies, and birds.
For cut flowers, choose stems with flowers that have just opened. Strip the foliage that will fall below the water level, and place in water immediately. For especially long-lasting blooms, sear the freshly cut ends with boiling water or a flame.
​After the flowers fade, small pods will form that eventually open at the top to reveal the ripe seeds. Gather the seeds as soon as the pods have opened; watch them carefully to prevent loss, since the seeds can easily be blown away by the wind. Store the seeds in a cool, dry place; keep in mind that they tend to lose their viability quickly, and are best planted within a year of harvest.
Leaves: Cooked. Very agreeable to the taste, the leaves are a good source of vitamin C. Some caution is advised, see the notes above on toxicity.

Seed: Raw or cooked. Oleaginous and antiscorbutic, the seed is very agreeable to the taste. It contains some opium. Caution is advised
Anodyne, antiscorbutic. The flowers and seed capsules are mildly diaphoretic.

Companion Planting

​Poppy is a great companion plant for roses. It looks wonderful with blue flowers like Campanula 'Telham Beauty', Centaurea 'Blue Boy', and Nigella 'Miss Jekyll Blue'.

Problems

No serious insect or disease problems.

Suggested Varieties

(Centaurea cyanus ‘Dwarf Blue’)

Dwarf Blue Cornflower is an annual flower native to Europe that grows in open fields and along railroads from coast to coast of the United States. At maturity, this plant reaches a height of 1-3' and features grayish green, blade-like foliage, and long stems topped by a 1” circlet of tiny lavender blue flowers with a darker center. This plant attracts bees and butterflies, provides bird forage, tolerates drought and frost, makes dye, self-sows, and is used as a cut flower!
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(Centaurea cyanus ‘Tall Blue’)

Tall Blue Cornflower is an annual flower that is native to Europe that can be found growing in open fields and along railroads from coast to coast of the United States. At maturity, this plant reaches the height of 1-3' and features grayish green, blade-like foliage, and long stems topped by a 1” circlet of tiny lavender blue flowers with a darker center. This plant attracts bees and butterflies, provides bird forage, tolerates drought and frost, makes dye, self-sows, and is great as a cut flower! 
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(Centaurea cyanus ‘Tall Pink’)

Tall Blue Cornflower is an annual flower native to Europe that grows in open fields and along railroads from coast to coast of the United States. At maturity, this plant reaches a height of 1-3' and features grayish green, blade-like foliage, and long stems topped by a 1” circlet of tiny lavender blue flowers with a darker center. This plant attracts bees and butterflies, provides bird forage, tolerates drought and frost, makes dye, self-sows, and is used as a cut flower! 
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