Poppies

    Several years ago a friend gave me seeds from poppies growing on an island in Gloucester MA. I scattered them over the bare ground in late fall and in early spring their blue-green leaves were sprouting everywhere.  Each year since I have collected their seeds in the late summer for fall sowing, although they would probably self seed if left alone. They are Papaver somniferum, the opium poppy, which grows wild in many parts of the world, particularly Asia Minor. Media images of immense poppy fields in Afghanistan are startling reminders of the power of plants for good or evil. My friend and I call them Island Poppies and they add a wonderful wildness to the spring garden.A seed landed in the creeping thyme and the poppy grew up to be a companion for someone sitting on the bench. Photo below shows the seed pod in back of the bloom. The seeds ripen later in the summer and the pod dries to become an exquisite shaker.