Poppies

Q. I have some fancy poppy seeds I tried to grow last season. None sprouted. They were new and from Thompson-Morgan a good company. What is the proper way to get them to grow. I want to try again as I like to cook with the seeds. Thanks!

A. Sow them very lightly and cover only with a tiny sifting of peat moss. Keep evenly moist in reflected cool light and allow to germinate inside in trays. Then when established transplant them into your garden beds. Also I hope you are not using the ornamental orange-red Oriental Poppy as that is not the seed with which we cook.

Q. After poppies bloom can you (should you) cut back the ugly browning foliage?

A. Yes trim off all that dead brown or yellow foliage. It harbors insects and fungi and does absolutely no good for your poppies. Give them regular feedings of a high nitrogen fertilizer as Rapid Grow or Miracle-Gro. In the spring when they are getting ready to bloom give them a booster with a high middle number in the formula.

Here is some good info on the culture of poppies. If you know which species you are growing you can go to the site I have chosen and click on the name.

(Poppies) Family: Papaveraceae

Range: Temperate climates in Northern Europe Asia and North America
Number of species: 100

Many garden poppies are annuals such as the corn poppy and opium poppy or are short lived perennials such as the Iceland poppy. The Oriental poppy and it's cultivars are useful to the perennial gardener. The common name is thought to come from the Saxon popig meaning "sleep " a reference to the opium poppy.

Growth:
Mostly low-growing basal-lobed or dissected (scalloped) leaves. Reproduction Plants normally produce solitary blossoms.