poppies: how to promote new flowers and store seed?

[nmayhew]

hi,

we have some nice large poppies in the garden and i wondered what is the best wayto promote continued flowering?

is it to "chop" them once they start to wilt etc like roses? if so, when is best and how much to chop ? (just the flower or the whole stem?)

and to keep the seed for next year, how best to go abouut this?

i collected lupin seeds last year and now have seeds germinating in under 5 days (!) so am particulalrly keen to give it ago with another plant.

many thanks,

nick

[vicky]

Oriental poppy - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Do you means Oriental Poppies? If you cut the entire stem off when the flower finishes this is supposed to promote a second flush - although I have never found it to work! If you want the seeds the you will have to leave a seedhead on to dry, plants don't come true from seed and you can get variations on the parent plant which can be interesting. You can also increase these plants by root cutting in the spring (you've missed the slot for this year).

[Madasafish]

As Vicky said, wait for the poppy heads to dry on the stalk.
I then collect the heads and store the seeds in an old plastic pill bottle. Keeps them fresh for years..

I run in the mornings and leave seeds on the tracks and paths I run: some do flower!

[IgglePiggle]

You lot are so lucky to have poppies, I just cant get the damn things to grow

[nmayhew]

thank you all

yes sorry should have said - oriental poppies

a couple of small looking plants bought from local garden centre, thinking they will never survive, and this year they are almost waist high and absolute monsters! (in our garden they have to be - we border fields so it's survival of the fittest!).

this year grown some from seed - the packets seem v hit and miss: some we have 75% germ rate, the other pretty much none! either way, it's still waaaay cheaper like that, which is why SWMBO has vetoed any more plant buying.

thank again for your advice - helpful as always

Nick

[Two_Sheds]

The simplest way to increase oriental poppies is through division in autumn or spring. BBC - Gardening - Plants - Oriental poppy