This year I planted 2 Papaver Orientalis - Beauty of Livermere and
Checkers beneath a small tree, but in the sun.

I've had just one very short lived flower from the Beauty of Livermere.

The Checkers (should be large black and white flowers) developed 4
healthy looking flower heads, but before they opened they went black and
burnt looking and are clearly not now going to produce anything.

Could this be the plant just taking time to settle in, is it diseased,
or was there something I should have done to prevent this problem? I
have never deliberately grown poppies before, although "volunteers" seem
to thrive in my garden (on the east coast of Scotland.

TIA

Steve

On 10 Jul, 16:42, Steve wrote:
This year I planted 2 Papaver Orientalis - Beauty of Livermere and
Checkers beneath a small tree, but in the sun.
I've had just one very short lived flower from the Beauty of Livermere.
The Checkers (should be large black and white flowers) developed 4
healthy looking flower heads, but before they opened they went black and
burnt looking and are clearly not now going to produce anything.
Could this be the plant just taking time to settle in, is it diseased,
or was there something I should have done to prevent this problem? I
have never deliberately grown poppies before, although "volunteers" seem
to thrive in my garden (on the east coast of Scotland.

Mine have flowered ages ago, well before the bout of constant rain
we've been having. I can only think that they're settling, because
they're pretty late flowering if they are flowering now but then again
you are in Scotland... Did you have much rain? Sounds like they
perhaps got too wet. They like very good drainage. Mine have settled
on a the hedge of a gravel path and are fiting for space with a ground
ivy. I can't think of a disease for them.

"Jennifer Sparkes" wrote in message
...
The message
from Steve contains these words:

snip

The Checkers (should be large black and white flowers) developed 4
healthy looking flower heads, but before they opened they went black and
burnt looking and are clearly not now going to produce anything.

I had the same problem with my Patty's Plum which flowered well
last year. I put it down to the strange season we have had weatherwise.

Jennifer - in Bristol

Mine was a 5 min wonder this year as well

--
Charlie, gardening in Cornwall.
http://www.roselandhouse.co.uk
Holders of National Plant Collections of Clematis viticella (cvs) and
Lapageria rosea

In article , Jennifer Sparkes
writes

I had the same problem with my Patty's Plum which flowered well
last year. I put it down to the strange season we have had weatherwise.

Jennifer - in Bristol


Mine flowered very well this year, in fact all of mine have done well
including commutatum which last year was miserly.
Janet
--
Janet Tweedy
Dalmatian Telegraph
http://www.lancedal.demon.co.uk

I did plant them late and we did have a very wet June. They are on
light, well drained soil.

Sounds like these poppies are a bit variable, so I won't give up on them
yet, maybe next year will be better.

Thanks to all for the feedback,

Steve