Poppies (Papaver spp.) are a well known spring flower. They are symbols of remembrance (Flanders Red) as well as a favourite amongst the young and young at heart. Available in a mix of colours and single and double flowers, they are great for mass plantings or in cottage-like gardens.


How to grow poppies in a garden

  1. Choose a spot in the garden that receives full sun.
  2. Prepare the planting area well by digging in Yates Dynamic Lifter Organic Plant Food.
  3. Sow seeds directly where they are to grow by scattering them thinly on top of the soil and barely cover with some Yates Black Magic Seed Raising Mix. Firm down and water with a fine mist spray.
  4. Water gently and keep moist through germination period. 
  5. Once seedlings are approximately 5 cm, thin out seedlings ensuring that they are a minimum of 20 cm apart. Mulch with an organic mulch, such as bark chips, woodchip or pea straw.
  6. Feed regularly with Yates Thrive Rose & Flower Granular Plant Food. TIP: For an added boost, apply Yates Thrive Roses & Flowers Liquid Plant Food.
     


How to grow poppies in a pot

  1. Choose a pot at least 200 mm wide and deep. Position in full sun and is sheltered from wind.
  2. Fill the chosen pots with quality potting mix, such as Yates Premium Potting Mix.
  3. Plant directly into the pot by scattering the seeds thinly on top of the soil, then barely cover with Yates Black Magic Seed Raising Mix. Firm down and water with a fine mist spray.
  4. Water gently and keep moist through germination period.
  5. Feed every 1 to 2 weeks with Yates Thrive Roses & Flowers Liquid Plant Food. TIP: For an added boost, apply Yates Thrive Natural Fish & Seaweed+ Plant Food Concentrate.

Yates varieties

Poppy 'Flanders Red'

A beautiful rich, red papery bloom, that inspired the WW1 poem ‘In Flanders Fields’ by Lt. Col. John McCrae.

Poppy 'Shirley Mix'

Large silky single and semi-double blooms, many with picotee edges and colours of salmon, rose-pink, crimson and red.

California Poppy 'Gold Rush'

Beautiful silky, fluted flowers in a rich, buttery cream colour. Easy to grow and drought tolerant, they bloom all Summer.

Growing tips

  • Select the planting site carefully, as these plants dislike root disturbances and do not transplant well.
  • Great plant choice for cottage gardens.
  • Varieties include:

Flanders Red or Shirley Mixed (P. rhoeas)
Spring flowering plants available in the well known red or salmon and rose pink coloured varieties. Sowing times - temperate climates sow in autumn, cool climates sow in late summer and early autumn. 

Iceland Poppy (P. nudicaule)
Late winter blooms to early spring blooms that are available in shades of gold, lemon, apricot and salmon. Sowing times - temperate climates sow in mid-summer and autumn, cool climates sow in mid-summer and early autumn. 

California Poppy (Eschscholzia californica)
Spring and summer flowering plants in a mix of pastels, including purple, yellow, red and orange. Sowing times - temperate climates sow in autumn and cool climates, sow in early spring.


More Plants

Proteas

Not just any old blossom, protea flowers are blooms with attitude. If you can give them full sun and reasonable drainage, proteas will love you.

Azalea

Azaleas vary from small, delicate shrubs that are happy in pots, up to hardy 1.5m shrubs ideal for border planting. Here's how to grow azaleas in your garden.

Lavender

Lavender are hardy perennial plants with silvery-grey, aromatic foliage & dense spike of flowers in shades of purple, blue, pink and white.

Echinacea

Echinacea is a hardy herbaceous perennial with large fragrant pink daisy-like flowers. Used for therapeutic purposes and as a delicious tea.

Recommended products

Yates Black Magic Seed Raising Mix

Specially formulated for trouble-free seed raising in trays (or outdoor seed sowing direclty into the ground) and propagation of cuttings.