Latest news with #poppy
Irish Times
a day ago
- General
- Irish Times
Poppies symbolise the fleeting, bittersweet beauty of summer gardens
If ever there was a flower that symbolises the fleeting, bittersweet beauty of the garden in summer, then it's surely the poppy, with its gossamer-thin petals and delicate, slender stems. But do you know your short-lived, sun-loving annual poppy species, including many that are suitable for poorer, free-draining soils, from longer-lived biennial, perennial and shrubby kinds, including some that will only flourish in cool, damp, humus-rich, woodland conditions? If you're lucky, you may have come across the very rare, yellow-horned poppy, Glaucium flavum (a particular favourite of the late British artist and gardener Derek Jarman), a wild biennial or short-lived perennial species sometimes found growing in shingly beaches along sheltered Irish coastlines. Much more common is the annual wild field poppy or corn poppy, Papaver rhoeas, whose vermilion blooms light up road verges and waste ground at this time of year. Each ephemeral flower lasts just three to four days, but then another quickly takes its place, resulting in a long-lasting display over several months. READ MORE For those who dislike red, consider the cultivated forms of this sun-loving, hardy annual, commonly known as the Shirley poppy, which are also available to gardeners, with both double and single flowers in soft shades of pink, apricot, white, peach and sooty purple. An enduring favourite is Papaver rhoeas 'Amazing Grey', famed for its silver-purple blooms. To enjoy it as a cut-flower indoors, simply sear the end of each stem with a lighter or candle or plunge the tips into boiling water for 7-10 seconds before quickly placing them in cold water. [ Slow Flower power is all about the local and the seasonal Opens in new window ] Easily raised from seed in autumn or early spring, the conventional advice is to direct-sow these into the ground where you want the plants to flower. But I've had much greater success with module-raised seedlings transplanted into the garden in very late spring and early summer. Just make sure to do this while they're still small. The annual/short-lived perennial poppy species commonly known as the Californian poppy, Eschscholzia californica, similarly loves a warm, sunny spot. But it usefully combines this with a remarkable ability to thrive in the poorest and stoniest of soils, making it a great choice for drought-prone gardens where it will also often self-seed. Typically known for its flame-orange flowers which appear throughout summer, many new varieties with blooms in shades of peach, pink, coral, cream, buttercup and apricot have been introduced in recent years and are easily raised from seed. Examples include the 'Thai Silk' series, especially 'Thai Silk Apricot Chiffon' with its luminously beautiful, deep apricot flowers. The Californian poppy, Eschscholzia californica, loves a warm, sunny spot By comparison, growing the outlandishly beautiful but famously capricious Icelandic poppy is a challenge for even seasoned gardeners. Best known as Papaver nudicaule, but recently renamed as Oreomecon nudicaulis, this late spring/early summer-flowering species loathes intense heat, preferring cool, bright conditions. Technically a perennial, it's best treated as a biennial raised from seed sowed in late spring and then planted out in autumn to flower the following year. Getting its tiny seeds to successfully germinate and then preventing them from damping-off can be fiendishly difficult, a challenge made more aggravating by the fact that seed of the most desirable strain – the Colibri poppy, originally bred for the cut-flower trade – is also mind-wateringly expensive. Icelandic poppy: Outlandishly beautiful but famously capricious But for those who succeed, the reward is giant poppy flowers in shades of peach, watermelon-pink, gold and brilliant orange, which emerge like tropical butterflies out of giant sculptural flower pods. Equally famous for its disdain of anything other than ideal growing conditions, the exquisite Himalayan poppy (Meconopsis baileyi; M 'Lingholm'; M 'Slieve Donard') is also that rarest of things in nature, which is blue-flowering. To grow it well – indeed, to grow it at all – you must give this summer-flowering perennial a cool, damp but free-draining, humus rich, neutral to slightly acid soil and edge-of-woodland growing conditions where its delicate blooms are protected from harsh winds and strong sunlight. For this reason, it's generally only found growing in parts of the country where rainfall levels are high and summers rarely get too hot. Himalayan blue poppy Only when it's entirely happy will it then self-seed, the caveat here being that you must grow a non-sterile variety for it to do so. Yet such is the glorious sight of it flowering en masse that many gardeners still go to extraordinary lengths to encourage this aristocratic poppy to establish. But nothing could be further from the case when it comes to the opium poppy, Papaver somniferum, a hardy, sun-loving annual species so promiscuous that once introduced, it's likely to self-seed itself about the place with happy abandon. It can even arrive unannounced, its tiny seeds hitching a lift in the soil of a potted plant or brought on the soles of muddy gardening boots. In my own garden, an unnamed variety with shocking-pink, double flowers did just this a few years ago, producing tall, large, violently colourful blooms so entirely out of place that it's as if a flock of noisy flamingos had descended without warning into the cool, damp green of an Irish landscape. Somehow, I just don't have the heart to pull the numerous seedlings out, excusing them on account of the large, long-lasting, ornamental seed-heads that eventually follow. But my favourite will always be the altogether subtler, plum-coloured Papaver 'Lauren's Grape'. Pink opium poppies Other abundantly self-seeding members of the poppy family eminently suitable for an Irish garden include the shade-loving Welsh poppy, Meconopsis cambricum, a late spring to early autumn flowering perennial species with an endearing way of insinuating itself into shady cracks in paving, steps and stone walls. A woodland plant at home in cool, damp, moderately rich but free-draining soils, the pretty flowers come in shades of orange, soft coral and bright yellow. Among the loveliest is the pale apricot-coloured Meconopsis cambricum var. aurantiacum. Also making the list is the oriental poppy, Papaver orientale, a herbaceous perennial species whose large, flouncy flowers are the stuff of cottage garden dreams. Its great failing, however, is the ugly gap left behind after this sun-loving border plant finishes flowering in early summer, a flaw best managed by cutting it back hard and then quickly following with a liquid feed. [ Natural liquid nettle feed is superb for keeping your plants healthy – it just smells terrible Opens in new window ] Last, but not least, is the Californian tree poppy, one of the few shrub-like members of the poppy family, with silver-grey foliage and giant, golden-eyed white flowers that appear on long, lax stems in late summer. This showstopper also has strong Irish connections, with its genus and species names celebrating two Irishmen, the botanist Thomas Coulter and the astronomer Thomas Romney Robinson. Flower of a California tree poppy, Romneya coulteri, whose genus and species names celebrate Irishmen Thomas Coulter and Thomas Romney Robinson Introduced into cultivation in the late 19th century, it first flowered in the National Botanic Gardens in Glasnevin in 1877. Typically requiring a sunny, sheltered spot and famously difficult to establish, it can unfortunately become too much of a good thing when it finally does, often sending out suckers that appear metres away from the parent plant. Still, such is its undeniable charm in full bloom that few gardeners can resist it. This week in the garden Deadhead, deadhead, deadhead … Heavy rain and hail showers in recent weeks have damaged the flowers of many plants. To encourage them to recover and start producing new blooms, use a sharp secateurs or snippers to cut them away, making sure not to accidentally remove any newly emerging flower buds. Mulch around the base of newly planted shrubs and trees to lock in moisture while soils are still wet after heavy rainfall. Suitable materials include fresh grass clippings, home-made compost, well-rotted garden manure and seaweed. Dates for dour diary Tullynally Castle & Gardens Plant Fair – Castlepollard, Co Westmeath. Saturday, June 21st. With stalls by many of the country's leading nurseries. Fruitlawn Garden Open Day – Abbeyleix, Co Laois. Sunday, June 22nd. With plant sales and refreshments. Delgany and District Horticultural Society Rose Show – St Patrick's National School, Greystones, Co Wicklow, Saturday, June 28th. All entries welcome, email by Thursday, June 25th.
The Sun
06-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Sun
Queen Camilla wears poppy-themed gloves at Tower of London art installation for 80th anniversary of VE Day
THE Queen proved a good fit for a striking 80th anniversary commemoration of VE Day by donning a pair of striking poppy-themes gloves. Camilla placed the final flower at a new display of nearly 30,000 ceramic poppies at Tower of London. 2 2 The installation, called The Tower Remembers, represents a 'wound' across the inner walls of the fortress, symbolising the enduring sacrifices made during the conflict to mark 80 years since the end of the conflict. Wearing black leather gloves embellished with poppies she said: "It was so cold this morning I thought it would be the perfect time to wear them." Poet Laureate Simon Armitage read out a specially commissioned VE 80 poem called 'In Retrospect'. She was taken on a tour by Yeoman Warder Tracey Machin, along with her son Harrison, five, and D-Day veterans Henry Rice, 99, a former Royal Navy signalman and Richard Aldred, a tank driver in the Inniskilling Dragoon Guards. Richard handed the Queen a ceramic poppy, while Henry presented one to Harrison and they paused while before planting each of the flowers into the ground to complete the installation. Speaking afterwards Henry Rice said: "Last year I went to Normandy and had the pride and pleasure of meeting His majesty and Her Majesty. I said to her quietly, 'We met last year', she said, 'Yes, I know' and that that is fabulous. "I mean, why should she remember me?" He said of the installation: "Each one of those poppies represents a man that gave his life to allow me, my family, this country, in fact, to live in peace and comfort." The new display, which is open to the public from today until 11 November, uses poppies created for the 2014 installation Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red, which saw the Tower encircled by a sea of more than 880,000 ceramic flowers.
The Independent
06-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Queen praises ‘beautiful' poppy display at Tower of London
The Queen has described a commemorative poppy display at the Tower of London as 'beautiful' and joked that the ceramic blooms were 'quite tempting' to take home. Camilla visited the historic fortress on Tuesday to launch The Tower Remembers, marking VE Day and the 80th anniversary of the end of the Second World War in Europe. The new installation features 30,000 ceramic poppies from the 2014 Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red artwork, now redesigned to flow from the White Tower. Camilla admired the ceramic flowers and joked: 'I see why people would take them. I think they're so lovely. Quite tempting.' Project lead Tom O'Leary guided the Queen through the artwork, saying afterwards: 'She was very interested in it. She really liked the way that all the different heights comingulate.' Poet laureate Simon Armitage then read In Retrospect, a poem commissioned to mark VE Day. The Queen told him warmly: 'Lovely. Lovely poem. Thank you very much,' before asking how long it had taken to write. She met members of the Historic Royal Palaces and Tower teams who helped create the display, as well as D-Day veterans Henry Rice and Richard Aldred, who handed her a poppy to plant. Camilla was also joined by Yeoman Warder Tracey Machin and her five-year-old son Harrison, who planted a poppy alongside the Queen. Harrison said: 'I did a poppy with the Queen. This is my poppy,' pointing to the ceramic flower he had planted. Asked why the moment was important, he replied: 'Because it's really, really special.' He said he enjoyed living at the Tower of London, explaining: 'You get to see all the nice stuff,' and that it had been a 'really good' day. After helping with the ceremony, he was given a dragon teddy called Puffy. 'We chatted about all the poppies being here and it was really, really nice for them to be here,' he said. Ms Machin said: 'I could not be prouder of Harrison. He did such an excellent job. 'When you're five anything could happen so I'm really proud that he stayed very still. Her Majesty the Queen was absolutely wonderful. You can tell she has grandchildren herself. 'She was dressed absolutely beautifully in red and black, co-ordinating perfectly with our poppies. I think she was very impressed with the display as well.' The Queen was wearing gloves decorated with poppies, and told one attendee she had been given them in France last year. Mr Rice, 99, said of the visit: 'Memorable, that's the best word, because last year I went to France and had the pride and pleasure of meeting His Majesty and Her Majesty. I said to her quietly, 'We met last year', she said, 'Yes, I know', and that is fabulous. I mean, why should she remember me?' He added: 'Each one of those poppies there represents a man that gave his life to allow me, my family, this country in fact, to live in peace and comfort. 'I really do thank them and they are my heroes, all of them.' Outside the Tower, crowds clapped and cheered as the Queen greeted them. She shook hands with schoolchildren, joking about them missing lessons, before she departed. One member of the public called out: 'God save the King, we all love Camilla, give us a wave.'
