Poppy confusion!

I have several packages of poppies that were sent to me for sase. Thank you to all who have contributed to helping me get my gardens started. I really appreciate it.

I've spent all evening trying to sort my seeds so I can start planning next years gardens. However, these poppies have me confused. Can someone tell me if they are annual or perennial? Some sites say different things. I'm in zone 4 if that makes a difference. Also, do poppies need stratification?

Here's the poppies I have:
Lavender poppy
peony flowered poppies
oriental poppy
shirley poppy
and a package that's just labeled poppy

Can someone help me out so I make sure they are all treated as they need to be?

Thank you,
Joan

Your Oriental poppies are perennial. They probably won't bloom the first year - but they're very long lived. You can start them early in cell-packs and transplant them to the garden in the spring. They have long roots and don't like to be disturbed once they're established.

The lavender poppy and the peony poppies are both papaver somniferum - a hardy annual. They like to be directly sown in the garden - they resent transplanting. They don't need to be stratified but they like to get started in cool weather. Plant them as soon as you can work the soil in spring. I try to get mine planted in April. Just sprinkle the seeds on the surface of the soil and water them in.

Shirley poppies are papaver rhoeas - also a hardy annual. They should be planted in the same manner as the lavender and peony poppies. The annual poppies are all heavy re-seeders and will have many volunteers if you allow the seed pods to ripen on the plants. They're very easy once you have them.

I'd guess that your package just labeled "poppy" is also an annual ..... but you never know.

I nominate this as best question and answer of the week. Thank you both!!!!!

Thank you so very much PoppySue. You've helped me out a lot, and probably saved my precious poppy seeds from having a very difficult time. LOL You really know a lot about poppies! I appreciate you sharing your knowledge with me.

This past summer was my first year with flowers, and I really want to learn as much as I can this winter so I can do better next year.

And tiG - thank you for your kind words. It makes me feel so much more confident about asking questions. Sometimes I feel kinda shy to ask questions as I think I'm the only one who doesn't know the answer and will appear dumb. I'm sure I'll have many more questions this winter as I try to learn as much as I can about the seeds that I have, and the flowers they will one day become.

Thank you both very much.

Joan

Never feel shy about asking for information! That is precisely what these forums are all about. We learn from each other while we are having fun. And most of us learn from the questions and answers to things we have not tried yet. Have not grown any poppies except the native California ones so this was very enlightening for me as well.

Joan, I've never seen anyone here put down for asking a gardening question. That's what makes this place so great. And you asked exactly the question I'd been mulling over for months!!!! You did me a great favor:)