Poppies at Christmas

Hi Guys - I'm new here and I must say I think you seem a really friendly bunch!
I'm not new to gardening but I have a query I hope you can help me with. My husband has had a rotten year so far - he has had a heart attack and is quite ill. He LOVES poppies - especially the field type. He HATES Christmas normally. I would love to give him a big pot of poppies - in flower - at Christmas to cheer him up. How would I go about this as it is obviously completely the wrong time of year for them to flower. Do I just sow some now and keep them warm? Would the seeds need a cold spell? Any suggestions would be much appreciated.

 

Hi Jools ,



Welcome to Gardeners Corner

Now is the perfect time to sow the seeds because they germinate quickly in the warmer late Summer/Autumn soil .
However they will flower next Spring /Summer. As far as I know Poppies are a " long day " flowering plant which means they need at least 10 daylight hours every day to form the flowers.

You could always try sowing a pot and then keeping them inside on a bright windowsill.

Even if they don't flower you could give him the pot at Christmas as something to look forward to later on.

 

Thank you for the welcome and the answer. I hadn't thought about daylight hours. I have a warm, well lit for 12 hours a day, room (I keep reptiles in there). Perhaps this would be the place to keep the pot?

 

Hi Jools, Welcome from another newbie.

So sorry your husband hasn't been well and what a lovely idea. You could always plant some seeds and give it a go. Be very interested if they do flower for Xmas.

 

Thank you for your kind reply Zilly - I will try and I'll let you all know how I get on.

 

Welcome to Gardeners Corner

You could try preserving some

 

That's a nice idea Zigs - I used to press a lot of wild flowers as a child. He would prefer growing poppies but I might do this as a stand-by just in case I fail.

 

I've been thinking about this idea. He really loves our garden but can also get quite down during the winter. I have started to pick garden flowers to press, to make into a montage of summer flowers to remind him, in the deep dark hours of winter, how wonderful our gardens are. Thank you Zigs

 

to GC @JoolsK
So sorry to hear you husband is unwell; I do hope he fully recovers

That's a lovely idea

Very practical and I like that it gives him something to look forward to



Remembrance Day is only the month before ... maybe buy a handful of those poppies and then, pop them into the pot with the seeds you've sown (as per KFF's idea); wrap in cellophane with a nice big red bow?

 

Thank you for your lovely post M. That is a really nice idea regarding Remembrance Day.

 

Hi @JoolsK - also, how about taking lots of photos of poppies (and finding them on the web) and get one of those digital photoframes so that it is constantly cycling through lovely summer pictures in the dark winter days? Also, seriously, get some daylight bulbs to ensure you both get plenty of light - SAD (seasonal affective disorder) is real and can bring people down a lot in winter.