The great thing about poppies is their ability to propagate. I’ve planted corn poppies, California poppies, Icelandic poppies along with some other varieties in the back garden, and they provided both sumptuous colour throughout the summer, along with a smorgasbord of food for insects. As they began to die away in the last month or so, I’ve collected some of the heads to harvest the seeds, for next year. I made a point of not separating the different varieties so I won’t be sure of what will appear until next summer.

A collection of poppy heads, collected from the garden.

A poppy head sliced open to show the seeds.

Close-up of top of poppy head with seeds.
Poppy seeds
The final collection of poppy seeds, ready for planting.