Actually I came here looking for a Poppy forum in particular.So, Romando, you've got my vote for certain!! I am in zone 10b or sunset zone 17 (more accurate) and am in the "heart" of SF-the Tenderloin. I just love poppies. I went ahead and got some P. nudicuale (In June) and put them in a plastic tray I had made drainage holes in the bottom of. I figured it was still pretty cold at night, and the package had me able to start them at that time in my USDA zone (I've learned that seed package directions are not all that great) I was making the mistake of covering them with the lid to the plastic tray (recycled deli container) and bringing them in at night. I was beginning to lose hope, so I quit doing that and just left them outside ( I have a very sturdy ledge about 10" that runs around the 100 year old building) merely making sure the rich soil didn't get too dry. I was reading about Flander's Fields and why poppies are associated with WWI and so I kind of disturbed the soil on top and just a couple of days ago I got a little bunch of seedlings in one corner and then 2 or 3 scattered around! I'm so damn excited you'd think I invented the darn things!! I've read repeatedly that poppy seeds will sprout and then "damp off" a term I believe to mean "drop dead," but other than that am a little mystified. Is there any way to prevent that? I collected some good old CA poppies from ripe seed pods at the SFGH memorial garden and sowed them the same way. This was a couple of weeks ago. Some came from a plant that I believe to be a CA hybrid called "jelly bean" which come in pinks and I think white, as well as red, orange and yellow, and are larger than the usual E. californicum (is that right? Horticultural taxonomy is a mess...) but most were the regular orange ones. Many sites have told me to sow in the container they are to be in for the duration (usually the ground-very little on container poppy growing)-something to do with the tap root making transplanting somehow really difficult? What is your experience with this? Since you collect your seed and restart, obviously you've grown from seed, and I'm really hoping you can help a fellow poppy freak who is just getting started to prevent this vile threat of "damping off." I have been wanting to grow P. somniferum since I read a great article in Harper's magazine about 12 years ago-I wish I could give you a better date, because it was a really fantastic article. It was the "cover story," maybe that will help you find it. Anyway-poppy forum. Great idea! Particularly for us container people. Crossing my toes and fingers....

Even in zone 4, Oriental poppies are up and fairly good sized already. The image feature on Google has some nice photos of Oriental poppy seedlings and even better pictures if you Google the images for Oriental poppy leaves. It isn't inconceiveable that you got a bad batch of plants - even the most reputable mail order outfit isn't immune from having some failures - or that you may have suffocated them with a topdress of compost in the event you put on a thick layer. The literature says mulch/compost around but not directly on poppies. But in any case, they should have broken ground in your zone quite a while ago.

Hi Norma, If yours are already reseeding from the old ones, it sounds like you should have no problems growing the hybrids from seed, and light frosts are usually not a problem for california poppies. Here in northern California, it is generally recommended to plant poppies from seed after the start of the fall rains, but I think you get most of your rain in summer? In any case, they are accustomed to growth through winter, blooming generally in March and April here, sometimes on into May and June if they are deadheaded, and given some irrigation. They generally will not come true from seed if you have any of the regular orange colored flowers also blooming, as orange is the dominant gene. I would suggest that in future, it is best to plant seed as soon as it starts to get abit cooler in mid fall, and you should probably mulch lightly and softly water to get them started. They don't transplant all that well, unless you plant them individually in 4 inch size pots, and are careful with the roots when transplanting. Buena suerte!

Thanks everyone for the input. Thinman - I'm very glad to hear about the Baptista. That is one I particularly want to bring with me. Annie - As far as potting things up goes, I'm not going to do many that way. I've struggled to keep things in pots alive since moving here. Did that sort of thing in PA all the time. Not sure why I can't manage it here. Luckygal - When I was thinking about my poppy I was sort of picturing digging out a flowerpot shaped chunk of soil and then having a big hole to fill in. Your comments decided for me that that is the way to go. Pouting I'm ok with as long as things live. Thinking out loud... it might be best to leave my sage behind. It will be something for the next tenant that doesn't really need any special care. It does seem to thrive here.