Update: The Great Garden Poppy Project

Earlier in the year, I posted the following:

I have noticed with sadness that the local gardens, many of which are disappearing along with their elderly, long term gardeners, are less and less likely to hold those wonders of spring, volounteer old fashioned garden poppies, Papaver somniferum.

They come in all sorts of red, purple and pink shades, some are single, some double. Some are ruffled, some are blotched. Some are exquisitely beautiful, some dreadfully ugly.

I have managed to find a few packets of seed online, and have some flats started.

BUT!!! I would like to have some Vancouver/Victoria/BC heritage seed.

I would like to appeal to anyone with these growing in their own garden, or a local one who will allow you to collect seed, to please collect some seed pods and send them to me (I will send you an SASE if you like). I will mix all the seeds up, with a view to:

a) planting a whack of these in a plot next year, in order to generate a nice crop of randomly crossed seeds

b) distributing said seeds to interested parties

c) re-establishing these lovely volounteers in area gardens.

If you are interested, and will have some seed to share or recommend, message me and we can go from there.

Thanks everyone!
WesternWilson​

I see the lovely garden poppies are now in full bloom and will set seed soon. I will be dropping off seed collection envelopes with many gardeners in my area shortly, in the hope they will share the seeds set in their gardens.

I hope that some of you online will contact me offerering to share seeds as well!

Again, my thanks to all for participating,
Janet