German Poppies ~ Blooms to Seed

Growing up I remember my mother and grandmother growing these poppies. The reason I call them German poppies is because all my ancestors came from Germany.  They brought this seed over and its been reseeding ever since.  I am privileged to be able to keep it going.  

You start seeing the seedlings coming up in December and January. You will start seeing blooms in February through April.

I’ve always loved the blossoms because how frilly and puffy they look, almost like carnations. No, they do not have a fragrance. The ones I have are in salmon and red. I’ve heard they do come in other colors, but these are the only two I’ve grown up with.

Here you can see the poppy pods showing after the blooms have fallen off.

The pods will continue to dry on the stem.

Or you can cut stems just below pod and allow them to dry out in the sun. Once dry you can sift them to collect the seed to bottle.  Ready for seeding in the fall again.

Once seed is collected it’s time for getting creative with the pods.  So check out my next post on creating poppy pod ornaments.  God Bless!