Papaver rhoeas

Papaver rhoeas — the field poppy

Papaver rhoeas is the botanical name for the common or field poppy, the simple scarlet wildflower that has become one of the most resonant flowers in the world. It runs through our poppy and wildflower ranges within the flower seed collection.

History & origin

Native to Europe, North Africa and western Asia, the field poppy has followed farming for thousands of years as a weed of disturbed and arable ground, its seed lying dormant in the soil until the earth is turned. It was this trait that made it the flower of remembrance: poppies bloomed across the churned battlefields of the First World War, immortalised in the poem “In Flanders Fields.” The garden Shirley poppies were selected from wild field poppies by an English clergyman, the Reverend William Wilks, in the 1880s.

Its name is ancient and simple: Papaver is the Latin for poppy and rhoeas the old Greek name for this very flower.

Botanical characteristics

A slender hardy annual, the field poppy bears papery, bowl-shaped flowers — the wild form vivid red with a dark centre, the Shirley strains in soft pinks, whites and picotees — over fine, divided foliage. Each bloom is fleeting, but a plant produces them in succession, followed by the familiar pepper-pot seed heads. The flowers are excellent for bees, and the plant is a mainstay of meadow and pollinator mixes.

Growing Papaver rhoeas from seed

Field poppies resent being moved, so always sow them direct where they are to flower, scattering the tiny seed onto raked soil in autumn or spring and barely covering it. They thrive in full sun and poor ground, and self-seed freely once established. Our flower growing guide and flower sowing calendar cover the timing.

Ready to grow poppies? Browse the varieties or learn the basics first.

Related categories: Poppy · Wildflowers · Pollinator Flowers · Bee-Friendly Flowers · All Flower Seeds

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