The Much Sought-After Blue Poppy

I'm hoping that many of you who read my book will be inspired to have a go at growing the Himalayan Blue Poppy from seed. Or perhaps you're among the tens of thousands who have tried … and failed … and given up. Perhaps you first saw the Blue Poppy at a public garden in late spring, in late May or early June. Very likely it was love at first sight and then, imaging this beauty in your own garden, you snapped up a packet of seed, on sale in the garden store. You took the packet home, started the seed -- carefully following instructions -- and waited for it to sprout. Nothing happened. You blamed yourself. Well it was not your fault. The seed was probably dead and would have, just as surely, failed in the hands of even the most experienced meconopsis grower.

The seed you bought was undoubtedly harvested last year, in late summer, if not in the year before. Unless Blue Poppy seed is stored in the fridge, it will lose viability within a few months. How many retailers keep seed in the fridge until sold? How many would even know this is necessary? In collaboration with the Meconopsis Group - a Scotland-based society devoted to the study and cultivation of the Asiatic poppies - I have carried out germination trials in early spring '06, '07 and '08, comparing the performance of store-bought seed vs. mail order seed vs. garden collected seed. Results consistently prove the inconsistency of over the counter, store-bought Blue Poppy seed. Half of such packets tested resulted in zero germination. The rest, with rare exceptions, sprouted in the 5-20% range.

Nor was the product of any one seed company more likely to perform better or worse. Assuming seed producers deliver fresh seed to retailers such as garden centres, the variable factor is the length of time it sits on a display rack at room temperature. And don't be fooled by claims on the packet such as "foil-wrapped for harvest freshness". This may keep the seed dry, but will not extend its viability.

Mail order seed fared somewhat better, but still unreliably with results ranging from zero germination to a very satisfactory 75%. Seed from only one company, Jelitto, consistently and reliably produced good results. And this is the only commercial source of Blue Poppy seed that I can unreservedly recommend.

However, be of good cheer. If you know someone who has the blue poppy in their garden, ask for seed. If ripe seed is collected in late summer and fridge-stored it should still be viable the following spring. Indeed, gardeners have found that properly stored Blue Poppy seed is still good after two or three years, perhaps more.

Exploitation of the Allure of the Blue Poppy
HOME