Poppies are perfect for your rock garden.
Instead of buying plants, planting a variety of different California poppies from seed can be a great option for your new or existing rock garden because they will germinate into plants very quickly and come back year after year. This saves a great deal of money too. Your Rock Garden will benefit from dwarf poppy varieties that grow close to the ground and produce incredible color that will complement the rocks and taller plants by filling in empty spaces.
Annual and perennial poppy species are available
Poppy seeds are available in a wide variety of types, both annual and perennial. In a rock garden, you may want varieties that can be used for small alpine gardens, or in a large showy feature, you may prefer tall plants with stunning colors. The small colorful flowers will sprout effortlessly between the rocks, like smiles on the faces of the children. They will accent pale rocks with color, seeming to give them a life of their own. In a larger planting around large outcroppings or rock features, choose giant poppies in bright colors to make them look better from a distance.
Lifeless rock garden? Fix it up!
Use glorious California dwarf annual poppy seeds to sow between rocks. They will sprout quickly and grow little tufts of brightly colored faces between the rocks, giving a beautiful contrast to the stones. When making a rock garden for the first time, you’ll be tempted to use other plants that can take several seasons to mature to true beauty, and by all means go ahead, fill your space with a variety of plants, but add the dwarf poppies. quickly bring beauty and provide a continuous flow of beautiful colorful blooms to bridge the gap. Use dwarf Purple Gleam, or the unbeatable Rose Chiffon. The slightly larger flowers of the White Linen Poppy offer a great contrast in size and muted colors in the cooler weather that early spring offers.
Choose from a wide range of beautiful poppies
Whether you’re planting your first rock garden or trying to liven up an older one, California poppies are simply a must-try. Poppy seeds will cost less, are simply easier, and will produce more beauty, much faster than any other flower available. Also consider the perennial alpine poppy in colors of white, salmon, yellow and orange to establish a chorus of color in any garden. Buds that grow 6-8 inches tall are the perfect size for accenting rocks and are ideal for hardiness zones 2-9. They will return each year and brighten up the landscape with their profuse display of bright colors. They bloom constantly throughout the summer, dropping their seeds to produce even more plants the next season, and never seem to die out; a faithful and dependable plant that you will enjoy for years to come.
Poppies can establish quickly
Most of us are eager to see results when we take on any project. Gardens are no exception. We cannot wait several seasons to see the transformation of our landscape. For this reason, including poppies in our planting scheme is an absolute must. Planted from seed they will show beautiful flowers very quickly and will continue to re-seed and renew each year for a continuous display. Give preference to California poppy seeds when planning your rock garden.
So with that being said…