AMAZING GREY POPPY SEEDS

Papaver rhoeas

Wildly popular. Selected out of the superlative mix curated by Sir Cedric Morris, these papery “grey" beauties are more often washed with lavender or mauve but the effect in the garden is a unique monochrome rarely achieved with annuals. There are off types in every lot that we have sown since its “introduction", and growing conditions seem to affect the depth of color considerably, but we have decided that Amazing Grey is worth offering to those gardeners and budding flower farmers that really want a spectacular display of silvery pale puce punctuated with steely violet grey.

Best grown en masse. Worth the trouble of starting in flats and carefully transplanting to make good use of nearly every seed: sprinkle sparingly onto cells of moist soil, just barely dust with fine vermiculite if you wish, and mist thoroughly but very gently. Cover flat with plastic and place under lights at cool room temperature or in a cool (but not cold) greenhouse. Seeds will usually germinate beginning in about two weeks. Variable temperatures do help, but heat will often prevent germination. Once several seeds have germinated, uncover the flat but mist regularly to maintain moisture while the remaining seeds germinate. Thin to one plant per cell, or maybe two in deep 50 cell flats. Water regularly but allow soil to dry just slightly between waterings. Once seedlings are well rooted and large enough to transplant, harden off if necessary and allow soil to dry almost completely before transplanting so that the soil slips out of the cells easily without crumbling. Poppy plants will often perish if their roots are disturbed during transplanting. Tuck into moist but well-drained soil in full to part sun in spring. Fertilize transplants immediately with dilute seaweed emulsion. Water regularly just until established.

Can also be sown directly into the garden in very early spring just after the soil thaws or late autumn while the ground is still workable and before it snows. Thin plants to 3"-5" apart if you have the heart. In general, poppies prefer to germinate in cool damp conditions and bloom in warm dry weather. Most flowering stems of Amazing Gray top out at just under 2'. Flowers are doubles and singles, probably more singles than most marketing images imply.

These poppies do make lovely cut flowers but require special treatment to hold in the vase: Cut when buds are just beginning to open. Fully open flowers will not hold. Seal cut ends of stems immediately with a flame (a Zippo lighter or torch is useful in the field). Place cut flowers in a bucket of cool water, out of wind, heat and light, for several hours, preferably overnight. In the morning they will be ready to arrange. If you need to cut the stems yet again, plunge the cut ends into just-boiled water immediately afterward to seal the stems. Expect their delicate beauty to last no longer than a few days.

If you hope to save seed true to type, grow only this variety of this species and ruthlessly cull red buds before they open completely.

Packet contains around 500 seeds.

Photo by the amazing Fleuropean