The wildflower center in Austin had there big fall sale last weekend and it was close to the spring one in size and variations of plants. So for you Central Texas folks and South Central put that on your calender for next fall. They do a spring one in April and October for fall. Yes it is a paid event for non-members but for a great cause. I picked up some more wild flower seeds from Native American seed. The best for wildflower diversity IMHO. They have a Friday night members only preview sale and then total mayhem on Saturday for all the unusual stuff and then pretty mellow on Sunday (worked Fri-Sat), so we went Sunday) Happy Growing David

Hi there--it's hard to say without seeing it, but maybe take some pictures in to a local nursery and ask what they recommend. I don't know if you're near Natural Gardener outside of Austin but they have a lot of bulk buffalograss, blue grama, bermuda and even horseherb. I have a backyard area that is mostly horseherb... I'm not a big fan of it because it dies out in winter, at least here, leaving a big empty dirt patch. It does grow in shade and in sun though. A couple years ago I started weeding out some of the horseherb and replacing that area with wildflowers and buffalograss. It's taking a long time to fill in but I'm being patient... take it from me, though, who tried this without thinking--sowing grass seed in fall (unless it's rye) doesn't produce much. It doesn't have enough time to germinate and grow... it likes warm soil. I'm curious what the tall grass is, though, especially if it's native... You might be able to incorporate it somehow and show it off--by giving it a more controlled look by making paths or something and planting flowers at the edge of the paths... kind of like "framing" the wildness! Have fun experimenting... it's so cool to start with a canvas like that! amy

Seeds for this poppy are still widely available across the country and from some big name seed companions (Burpees, Parks, Botanical Interests) and are included in countless wildflower seed mixes, but restrictions may vary according to area. Typically, if it is grown as a garden ornamental with just a few plants, no one cares. I seriously doubt the DEA will be knocking on your door with handcuffs! They have a few more pressing issues to deal with than the growing of the odd opium poppy. And it takes entire fields of these plants to generate any meaningful supply of the latex/ opium from which heroin is derived.

I wonder if this is Richardia brasiliensis (stems densely hairy toward the base) or R. scabra (stems modestly hairy or glabrous toward the base). Richardia does have flowers with 4-6 lobes. Similar genera, such as Diodia, Diodella, Mitracarpus, and Spermacoce have flowers with 4 lobes.