How to Care for a California Poppy Garden

Grow a garden filled with the bright colors of California poppy flowers.

The visual intensity of a garden filled with brightly colored California poppies gives your yard a sense of drama. Growing a swath of the golden orange flowers that sway and bob in the wind atop their feathery gray-green foliage takes minimal care. A native American plant, Eschscholzia californica is California's official state flower and grows as a wildflower across more than 30 states. An annual, California poppy is resilient in hot climates with rocky, sandy soil. Whether you grow the bright orange type or one of the red, pink or yellow varieties, taking care of a California poppy garden is a low-stress way to enjoy vibrant flowers even if you have poor soil and dry weather.

Things You'll Need

• Garden hose
• Spray nozzle
• Watering can
• Mulch
• Compost

Instructions

1. Spray or sprinkle your poppy garden with water frequently during the first three to four weeks after planting. The tiny California poppy seeds are covered with just ¼ inch of fine dirt when planted, so they dry out quickly. Turn the spray nozzle on a garden hose to a mist setting or gently wave a full watering can over the soil to prevent puddling that can displace the seeds or drown the seedlings when they emerge.

2. Water the poppy garden occasionally after the plants reach 2 to 3 inches high, particularly if there is an extended period of dry weather. To extend California poppy's blooming season, increase your watering frequency after the flowers have been in bloom for about three to four weeks.

3. Pull weeds from around young poppy plants before they become large enough to crowd out the flowers. Initial garden bed preparation includes removal of weeds, but some may reappear during the first month when you are keeping the soil moist. Thereafter, the poppy's foliage will shade the ground, reducing the chance for weed seeds to germinate.

4. Spread a 1-inch layer of mulch loosely around the California poppy plants when they reach 3 to 4 inches high. Use grass clippings, straw, shredded leaves or wood chips to help retain moisture in the soil and suppress weed growth.

5. Sprinkle a thin layer of compost around the California poppy plants when they begin blooming. If you worked compost into the garden bed before planting the seeds, there should be sufficient nutrients in the soil to support a full season's growth, but additional compost partway through the season may promote fuller foliage and flowering.

6. Remove old poppy plants from your garden only after they cease to bloom, have wilted and start to brown. This allows the dry flower heads to release seeds into your garden. With frequent watering, new California poppy plants may emerge and grow to provide another round of colorful flowers in late summer or fall.

Tips & Warnings

• Place your California poppy garden in an area that receives full sunlight for most of the day. The flowers close when they're shaded, when it's cloudy and in the dark of night.

• Do not attempt to eat California poppy seeds or any part of the plants; they are poisonous and may cause extreme distress, depending on an individual's physical condition, age and weight.

• Call your doctor and the Poison Center hotline at 800-222-1222 immediately if a child, or anyone, ingests any part of a California poppy plant.

References

• Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center: Eschscholzia Californica, California Poppy
• "Fine Gardening": Eschscholzia Californica (California Poppy)
• Cornell University: California Poppy

Resources

• American Association of Poison Control Centers: Your Poison Center