Papaver: Poppy
Poppies are a striking, sun-loving, and reliable flower—perfect for almost any landscape.
Plant care & info
Family: Papaveraceae
Genus: Papaver
Common Name: Papaver, poppy
A large genus found in temperate and subtropical climates of Eurasia, Africa, and North America.
This reliable herbaceous plant can be either perennial or annual, and prefers to be planted in full sun with well drained soil. There are over 600 species covering a wide range of climates, but they are generally hardy in USDA Zones 5-10.
These are easy-care plants! Perennial poppies form mounded foliage in fall and sustains the plant until after flowering in the spring. After the blooms fade, the foliage will die away and can be cut back to the ground. New foliage will form again in the cooler fall and winter months.
Perennial poppies can be propagated by root cuttings. Annual varieties will re-seed themselves, so dead foliage can be pulled out after flowering. New plants will reemerge the following spring, wherever the seeds have found soil, so look out for these delicate poppies budding from the cracks in your driveway!
Papaver is prone to root rot, so well-draining, loamy soil is a must to sustain these plants. Slugs and snails are also known to enjoy them, so providing protection from these pests will benefit you and your poppies.
Ecologically, Poppies are an important pollen source that will attract numerous bees to your garden, so they often benefit any plant needing pollination to produce (tomatoes, fruits, etc.).
The foliage of some species dies back after blooming in the spring, which offers the opportunity for summer interest plants to fill their space during the warmer months. In the cooler fall months, the mound of fine, hairy foliage will reemerge—adding winter color and texture to a generally void garden.
Papavers prefer sun and rich, very well-draining soil. Add plenty of woody compost and/or pumice to your soil when planting for reliable drainage to avoid root rot, especially during the rainy winter months of the Pacific Northwest.
There are many plants with similar common names—California Poppy (Eschscholzia californica), Matilija Poppy (Romneya coulteri), Welsh Poppy (Meconopsis cambrica) and others—which do not belong to the genus Papaver, although they do prefer the same sunny, well drained sites as true poppies described here.
