A feast with poppies

The days are noticeable longer and the seeds are germinating; the spring cannot be too far away :) Having the indoor lights fired up, I also sowed some older seeds just for testing.

Papaver bracteatum (Iranian or Persian poppy) seeds displayed an amazingly good germination, even if a few years old. There is no reason not to share the seeds again and spread the joy of this truly red poppy. 
The large, pure red flowers are a sight to behold in June, and it is actually not a difficult plant in the garden, it only needs a sunny location with good drainage. The rosette of new leaves emerges in the fall and overwinters until spring under the snow. After flowering, the foliage starts yellowing and dies down, to repeat the cycle again starting fall. It is an amazingly cold hardy perennial poppy.

Larger size perennial poppy plants transplant badly due to their taproots. For this reason, it is recommended to grow them from seeds.
The seeds germinate well at room temperature for an early start (or sow outdoors in late spring) and the seedlings are not difficult to transplant. Because the germination is very good, I recommend to sow fewer seeds/pot; the seedlings will have more space to develop.
The grown up seedlings establish easily in the garden when planted in a good location later in the summer.

Add these three handsome perennial poppies to your garden for yearly bursts of colors: Papaver bracteatum, Papaver chakassicum and Papaver atlanticum ‘Flore-Pleno’.

And, for a good poppy feast, no one is stopping you to direct sow in late spring a few seeds of the annual Papaver macrostomum ‘Black Magic’. My favourite companion for Papaver chakassicum is in fact another easy to germinate and grow species: Polygala major.  They can be planted together in the rockery or in any sunny, well drained garden spot. Two easy to grow plants for major visual impact!