Six weeks or so ago I sprinkled some three-year-old Shirley Poppy seeds in a bed I've been having problems trying to get anything to grow but the daffodils that are in there. I plant only annuals in this bed to grow when the daffodils are finished. About three weeks ago I saw poppy sprouts all over in the bed, which surprised me really because I thought the seeds would be too old. So then I sprinkled quite heavily Tidy Tips (Layia platyglossa), Farewell-To-Spring (Clarkia amoena) and Queen Anne's Thimbles (Gilia capitata). I now have lots of little sprouts in that bed, and if it would ever get warm and the sun shine, those little babies would grow faster. All I did was sprinkle them around just before a rain so the rain would beat the seeds into the soil to give the seeds better contact with the soil and not get blown away. I hope the plants do well, otherwise next year I'll be on the hunt for something else to try to grow in this bed. Karen

Thanks. I've seen that. I've also ordered seed from overseas before and it's had a spotty record getting to me. Maybe because it's plant material. I'm not sure. So wanted something I could easily find in the U.S. as a substitute.

1. " Sonchus perhap S oleracaous " Nice ! I'll have to keep an eye out for more of these. 2. "Is a Brassica (ie Mustard) My guess is Brassica nigra ": Wow! My first Mustard in the wild ! Well, grown near a sidewalk in a mostly open field. 3. "Is it bush like or sprawling? Could be Anthemis 'Sauce Hollandaise'" : It's about 15-20" long. I don't think its bush like. I'll get more photos. 4."is a leek." Awesome ! I can let my Mom know they're ready for harvesting ! Or better yet, let them go to seed because we only have a few of these plants.

Yes, I think you are right -the flower in my posted photo is the Cora tinctoria. Native or not, it's been a wildflower here for as long as my friend remembers and called "yellow button flower". The foliage is definitely wild butter-cup-like, perhaps that is what she meant. I copied the info to file. Further Googling found an Amazon site selling seeds but I'll speak to my friend first to see if she wants to order there or continue to search locally. Maybe I got the wrong flower again anyhow. ha. Thanks, flora.