Cannot ship this species to West Virginia. If you have a question about the available quantity, please contact me before placing your order. Germination Information: In my experience, it’s easiest to start these poppies by scattering the seeds outdoors in late fall to early spring, so they can germinate whenever conditions are right in spring. (It is possible for the seeds to germinate in warm conditions, but if you wait too late to direct-sow in spring, your plants are likely to have short stems and small flowers. Still, you can collect their seeds for an earlier sowing the next time.) If you do the scattering thing, keep in mind that the seeds will need a spot that will be “open” the following year, where you won’t be disturbing the soil while they are sprouting in spring. Simply flinging the seeds over closely planted and mulched beds and borders is likely to produce poor results, with just a seedling or two by sheer luck. Instead, think of a spot you keep for annuals: the poppies early on, to be replaced by salvias or other heat-loving annuals for summer and fall color. Pull or dig out the heat-lovers after frost, level the exposed soil, scatter the poppy seeds as thinly as you can, and rake them in; don’t cover them with mulch. When the seedlings show up in spring, thinning them out to leave 6 to 12 inches between them will provide enough room for each to fill out. It’s hard to do that, but once you see the difference between crowded seedlings and those given ample space, you’ll probably agree that it’s worth doing the thinning! At this point, you can add mulch between the plants, if you want to. Keep the area moist during dry spells, and keep after the weeds, too; fast-growing cool-season weeds can quickly smother small poppy seedlings. It is also possible to start these seeds indoors—they’ll sprout within a week or so—and transplant them to your garden in spring. The trick is to avoid damaging their delicate roots, so consider using individual 3- to 4-inch pots: Sprinkle a few seeds in each, give them a light sprinkling of whatever growing mix you’re using or leave them uncovered, press down gently to firm the surface, and keep them moist. Once they sprout, you want to leave just one plant in each pot, so snip out the extras. The drawback to indoor sowing is that the seedlings tend to be spindly if they’re growing under ordinary lights in warm temperatures, so then there’s a delicate dance of trying to put them outside during the day (if it’s around 40°F or above) and somewhere cool at night, but not letting them get frozen. If you’re willing to experiment to find a system that works for you, you can end up with really nice, full seedlings that will go on to produce big, beautiful flowers. It takes a good bit of effort, though, at a time when other annuals need attention, so you too may find that direct-sowing is a much less time- and space-intensive approach. Note that this information will not appear on the seed packet you receive. Please read the description as well before ordering.
