I love poppies! This year I have annual Shirley poppies growing in both my garden and in a large flowerpot. The plants are pretty well covered in buds all down the stalks, but if I deadhead spent blooms, will more NEW buds form? Thanks for any info.

I had never heard of Shirley poppies, but I've now Googled it to see if they are the same as my Oriental poppies. They appear to be the same plant but with different shades of colours mostly. So, I would say, Yes, if you deadhead, the should continue to bloom. My Oriental poppies will, but only if I remove the stocks of the dead ones.

Some of the images that came up for Shirley poppies looked beautiful! I'm going to have to watch the seed stands in the stores and watch for Shirley poppy seeds. I'd like to try them.

I'm thinking the answer is "sometimes" Jane. I grew them in the Pac NW for years and they would continue making new flowers through the (cool, damp) summers, but when I tried to grow them in Utah, the hot, dry weather shut them down pretty quickly.

So if you have a cool, rainy summer they might keep going for you.

Shirley poppies aka corn poppies are completely different from perennial oriental poppies.

I personally would leave the seed pods alone.
Where I am at... I get the blooms I get, and... If I leave the plants alone... There's a good chance I will see them again next year.

At my house, the p. somniferum is a better performer.
http://gardens-in-the-sand.blo...