(Papaver rhoeas ‘Red’)
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Red Poppy is a cool-weather annual flower native to Asia and Europe but can commonly be found growing in agricultural fields and along roadsides throughout the United States. When fully grown, this plant can reach a height of 9-24 inches. It is characterized by its hairy stems, 6-inch green feather-like leaves, and 2-inch aromatic 4-6 petaled cup-shaped scarlet red flowers. This plant can be grown in a container, attracts bees and butterflies, is resistant to deer, self-sows, and is used as a cut flower!
Family: Papaveraceae
Genus: Papaver
Species: rhoeas
Variety: Red
Other Common Names: Common poppy, Common Red poppy, Corn poppy, Flanders poppy, Shirley poppy
Native to: Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Austria, Azores, Baleares, Baltic States, Belarus, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canary Is., Cape Verde, Central European Rus, Corse, Cyprus, Czechoslovakia, Denmark, East Aegean Is., East European Russia, Egypt, Finland, France, Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Hungary, Iran, Iraq, Ireland, Italy, Kazakhstan, Kriti, Krym, Libya, Madeira, Morocco, Netherlands, North Caucasus, Northwest European R, Norway, Pakistan, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Sardegna, Saudi Arabia, Sicilia, Sinai, South European Russi, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Transcaucasus, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkey-in-Europe, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, West Himalaya, Yugoslavia.
Introduced into: Alabama, Alaska, Argentina Northeast, Argentina Northwest, Argentina South, Assam, Bangladesh, Bermuda, Bolivia, California, Cape Provinces, Chile Central, Chile South, Colorado, Connecticut, Cuba, District of Columbia, Dominican Republic, East Himalaya, Ecuador, Haiti, Honduras, Idaho, Illinois, India, Iowa, Kentucky, Korea, Louisiana, Maine, Manitoba, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nepal, New Brunswick, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New South Wales, New York, Norfolk Is., North Carolina, Nova Scotia, Ohio, Ontario, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Québec, Rhode I., Saskatchewan, South Australia, Taiwan, Tasmania, Texas, Uruguay, Utah, Vermont, Victoria, Vietnam, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Western Australia.
Ease of Growing: Easy
Grown as: Annual
Bloom: June to August
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: 9-24"
Spacing: 15-18”
Produces: hairy stems, 6” green feather-like lobed toothed leaves, and 2” aromatic 4-6 petal cup-shaped scarlet red flowers.
USDA Grow Zone: 3-9
Genus: Papaver
Species: rhoeas
Variety: Red
Other Common Names: Common poppy, Common Red poppy, Corn poppy, Flanders poppy, Shirley poppy
Native to: Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Austria, Azores, Baleares, Baltic States, Belarus, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canary Is., Cape Verde, Central European Rus, Corse, Cyprus, Czechoslovakia, Denmark, East Aegean Is., East European Russia, Egypt, Finland, France, Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Hungary, Iran, Iraq, Ireland, Italy, Kazakhstan, Kriti, Krym, Libya, Madeira, Morocco, Netherlands, North Caucasus, Northwest European R, Norway, Pakistan, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Sardegna, Saudi Arabia, Sicilia, Sinai, South European Russi, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Transcaucasus, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkey-in-Europe, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, West Himalaya, Yugoslavia.
Introduced into: Alabama, Alaska, Argentina Northeast, Argentina Northwest, Argentina South, Assam, Bangladesh, Bermuda, Bolivia, California, Cape Provinces, Chile Central, Chile South, Colorado, Connecticut, Cuba, District of Columbia, Dominican Republic, East Himalaya, Ecuador, Haiti, Honduras, Idaho, Illinois, India, Iowa, Kentucky, Korea, Louisiana, Maine, Manitoba, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nepal, New Brunswick, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New South Wales, New York, Norfolk Is., North Carolina, Nova Scotia, Ohio, Ontario, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Québec, Rhode I., Saskatchewan, South Australia, Taiwan, Tasmania, Texas, Uruguay, Utah, Vermont, Victoria, Vietnam, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Western Australia.
Ease of Growing: Easy
Grown as: Annual
Bloom: June to August
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: 9-24"
Spacing: 15-18”
Produces: hairy stems, 6” green feather-like lobed toothed leaves, and 2” aromatic 4-6 petal cup-shaped scarlet red flowers.
USDA Grow Zone: 3-9
Germination is dependent on climate and should occur between 4 and 25 days. Start seeds 6 to 8 weeks before your average last spring frost. Because poppies resent transplanting, sow seeds in biodegradable pots that go in the ground with the plant. Moisten the germinating mix before sowing; fill 2-1/2-inch or larger pots to within 1/2-inch of the rim. To avoid over seeding each container, combine some sand with the seeds, empty them onto a creased piece of paper, and gently tap them out onto the germinating mix. Sprinkle a thin layer of germinating mix or vermiculite over the surface then spritz with water to settle the seeds. Cover the pots with plastic to help the mix retain moisture. When the seeds germinate in 7 to 14 days, remove the plastic. Set pots in a sunny window or under fluorescent lights. When seedlings are 1 inch high, thin them to one seedling per pot. The best way to do that is to cut off the unwanted plants with a scissors because pulling the seedlings out will disturb the roots of the remaining plant. Keep the mix evenly moist by watering from the bottom, not the top. Set the pots in a pan or sink filled with about an inch of water until moisture appears on the surface.
Transplant Outdoors
Transplant seedlings started indoors or bought at a garden center on a cloudy, calm day. Set each plant in the ground so the crown is just even with the surface. To prevent the rims of biodegradable pots from drying out and wicking water from the surrounding soil, peel off the top 1 inch of the pots or simply make sure you completely cover the pots with soil. Be careful about spacing. Plant far enough apart that the poppies enjoy good air circulation, avoiding the possibility of later problems with disease. You do not need to provide poppies with supplemental watering unless the summer is very hot and dry, nor do you need to fertilize. To keep all poppies in bloom for a longer time, deadhead spent flowers instead of allowing them to go to seed. If you prefer a very neat look in the garden, support taller varieties against wind and strong rain. Use commercial supports or branched twigs from your spring pruning of shrubs and trees.
Start Outdoors
Poppies are frost tolerant and germinate best in cool weather and soil. Sow seeds as early as the ground can be worked in spring. In warm areas, Zones 7 and higher, you can sow poppies in autumn; seedlings will begin to grow early the following spring. Poppies bloom profusely under cool growing conditions. When temperatures rise poppy plants tend to bloom only sporadically. Select a site in full sun, one that receives at least six hours of direct sun daily. In warm climates (zones), plants do best with some protective shade at midday. Prepare the soil first. Poppies grow in almost any kind of soil with good drainage. Waterlogged soil, especially in winter, is one of the main reasons some perennials such as Iceland poppies fail to survive from one year to the next. If your soil has poor drainage, amend it by digging in a couple of inches of compost. Mix the tiny poppy seeds with some sand to make even spacing easier. Sow thinly where you want the plants to grow in the bed. If you plan to make your own “wildflower mix” for a small meadow planting, add 3-4 parts sand to 1 part seed to the mix to help you keep the seeds separated and less likely to clump too close together for satisfactory germination. This also saves some of the task of thinning. Do not bury the seeds. Cover them with a very thin layer of fine soil (poppies germinate best with some light) and water the area. Keep the soil moist, but not soggy, until seeds germinate. At a soil temperature of 55 degrees expect germination in 10-15 days. When seedlings are about 1 inch tall, thin them to stand 6 to 10 inches apart. When you grow annual poppies sow more than once during spring to extend the color season in the garden.
Poppies add a lovely delicate-looking appearance to flower arrangements even if they last only two to three days. Cut the blooms when the buds are standing upright and show a bit of color—just before the petals are ready to open out. (It’s fun to watch the buds unfurl right before your eyes.) You may need a few tries before you get the timing right. When cut, the stems exude a milky sap, or latex, which can cause skin irritation if you happen to be allergic, so avoid touching it just to be safe. To make the flowers last longer seal the cut ends by plunging them for a few seconds in hot or boiling water, or singe the ends with a match or candle flame. Put the stems immediately in cold water then combine them with your other plant material. If, in spite of your best efforts, the stems begin to flop over, prop them up by setting them next to sturdier flowers that can act as supports.
At the end of the season, leave a few plants to die down and self seed. Others can be pulled up and composted. Harvest the largest pods, and save the seeds for the next planting. Poppies are self-seeding, the seed, which is produced from July onwards, can remain viable in the soil for many years. To ensure poppies come again from self sown seed the ground should be disturbed in the autumn. This gives space for the next generation of seedlings to establish.
For Cut Flowers:
Cut when flowers are in bud, hold the base of the stems for a few seconds in a flame or boiling water and the flowers will last several days in water.
Plant Uses:
Cottage/Informal Garden, Flower Borders and Beds, Wildflower meadows, Butterfly & Bee Gardens, Cut Flowers.
For Cut Flowers:
Cut when flowers are in bud, hold the base of the stems for a few seconds in a flame or boiling water and the flowers will last several days in water.
Plant Uses:
Cottage/Informal Garden, Flower Borders and Beds, Wildflower meadows, Butterfly & Bee Gardens, Cut Flowers.
Seed: Raw or cooked. Much used as a flavoring in cakes, bread, fruit salads etc, it imparts a very nice nutty flavor. The seeds are rather small, but they are contained in fairly large seed pods and so are easy to harvest. The seeds are perfectly safe to eat, containing none of the alkaloids associated with other parts of the plant.
Leaves: Raw or cooked. Used like spinach or as a flavoring in soups and salads. The leaves should not be used after the flower buds have formed. Some caution is advised.
Oil: An edible oil is obtained from the seed. Said to be an excellent substitute for olive oil, it can be used in salad dressings or for cooking.
Syrup: A syrup can be prepared from the scarlet flower petals, it is used in soups, gruels etc.
Dye: A red dye from the petals is used as a food flavoring, especially in wine.
Leaves: Raw or cooked. Used like spinach or as a flavoring in soups and salads. The leaves should not be used after the flower buds have formed. Some caution is advised.
Oil: An edible oil is obtained from the seed. Said to be an excellent substitute for olive oil, it can be used in salad dressings or for cooking.
Syrup: A syrup can be prepared from the scarlet flower petals, it is used in soups, gruels etc.
Dye: A red dye from the petals is used as a food flavoring, especially in wine.
The flowers of corn poppy have a long history of medicinal usage, especially for ailments in the elderly and children. Chiefly employed as a mild pain reliever and as a treatment for irritable coughs, it also helps to reduce nervous over-activity. Unlike the related opium poppy (P. somniferum) it is non-addictive. However, the plant does contain alkaloids, which are still under investigation, and so should only be used under the supervision of a qualified herbalist. The flowers and petals are anodyne, emollient, emmenagogue, expectorant, hypnotic, slightly narcotic and sedative. An infusion is taken internally in the treatment of bronchial complaints and coughs, insomnia, poor digestion, nervous digestive disorders and minor painful conditions. The flowers are also used in the treatment of jaundice. The petals are harvested as the flowers open and are dried for later use. They should be collected on a dry day and can be dried or made into a syrup. The latex in the seedpods is narcotic and slightly sedative. It can be used in very small quantities, and under expert supervision, as a sleep-inducing drug. The leaves and seeds are tonic. They are useful in the treatment of low fevers. The plant has anticancer properties.
Project Purity Seeds can not take any responsibility for any adverse effects from the use of plants. Always seek advice from a professional before using a plant medicinally.
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'
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!
(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!
(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!