The combination of the poppies, Japanese irises and astilbe was just beautiful, thanks to the generosity of Jo Ann (ge1836).
Thank you for the poppy seeds!
Thank you, Jo Ann!
We loved the first poppy to bloom wearing an astilbe bud hat.
The astilbe and this poppy couldn't be closer in color.
They aren't camera shy either.
Many grew much taller than I ever expected!
This one topped out at 6' tall.
Here it is in bloom.
In the afternoon sun one could almost imagine there was a butterfly on the inside at the left.
Here's the tall one towering over the garden.
Love this face.
Another pretty face with astilbe to match, but of course!
Very pretty as the sun slowly begins to set.
And even nicer a little while later.
I love this pink astilbe and the poppy together.
This astilbe is also an ideal match for this poppy.
The Japanese iris, 'Fortune', goes so well with the poppies.
You can see that even the bee just couldn't resist stopping by for a visit.
Thank you, my friend, for all the joy your seeds brought and that your friendship continues to bring.
This is my most favorite shot of all the poppies:
beautiful pictures Pirl. Love all the poppies, Do you have your astilbes growing in sun? they are so full and beautiful.
Yes, they're in full hot sun and can take it because they were planted with a lot of my husband's compost under and all around them. Each spring they get more compost and they do fine.
Thanks Pirl.I cant believe how beautiful everything turned out.Just fantastic.
You're welcome but it is I who thanks you.
Isn't it amazing what friendship and a packet of seeds can do?
I dont really need the credit.I just convey the means by which others fulfill their vision.When results come I am as thrilled as anyone.
I dont take credit for the sucesses nore the blame for losses. Nature does most of it.
True but I'd never have succeeded or failed if you hadn't sent me the seeds so, in the end, you do get the credit.
What a wonderful idea. I am going out to do some rearranging of my own. Astilbe, poppy, lilies.... Great. Pricess. Thanks Arlene.
Hope you had fun, Mary! I do love the JI's and poppies with astilbe.
I broadcast some of my poppy seeds around my Astilbies. I have some of those Irises in another location. This was the first that I have planted those. I like them a lot. Going to get some more locally.
I also love JI's. I've found Greywood Farm to be an exceptional place to buy them.
http://greywoodfarm.squarespace.com/2012-ji-intros/
The owner, Darlyn Wilkinson, sends big beautiful clumps and they bloom the first year (and subsequent years) for me. The first photo was taken the day they arrived, 4/19/2012, and they all bloomed and have increased substantially for me. I've ordered from her in previous years and doubt there will be a year when I don't place an order with her.
Another terrific place is Eartheart Gardens in Maine. The owner there is Sharon Whitney and she sells fabulous plants and sends huge divisions, unlike many other sellers or vendors who sell plants with the wrong name.
http://www.eartheartgardens.com/IrisesofInterest.htm
I bought 'Sit Right Down' from Sharon when we visited Eartheart in 2008 and it has increased beyond all expectations and bloomed gloriously this year with so many stalks and so many flowers that it was amazing. Her gardens are where I first saw poppies with JI's and I love her natural approach to gardening. No "soldier straight" lines for her and she IS the hybridizer of many of them!
This message was edited Sep 16, 2012 4:25 PM
Pirl, thanks for those links. I will check them out later. Mike
You're quite welcome. I've received many JI's through friends and businesses but Greywood Farm and Eartheart stand far above the others for quality, number of fans and the soil they're grown in that produces such great plants.
Let me put in a word for Aitkens' Salmon Creek Nursery. I have just recieved 9 new varieties from them. They were very reasonably priced and were healthy looking plants. They have been in the ground for alittle over aweek and are already pusing up new leaves. I have purchased dwarf iris from them in the past and have been very pleased with them.
I think I just bought the last two astilbes in town. I so wanted to try your suggestion about astilbe, poppies and Japanese iris. I am done seed collecting, at least for poppies, for this year. what a pain. I still have seed I want from scabiosa, Love in the Mist, and Cupid's Dart.
Just say the word if you need more astilbes!
Oh Arlene. I will see how they work where I put them this fall. I love astilbes and because our weather is so cool, including our sun, they can grow where they would never grow 'outside.' (outside = lower 48). Just out of curiosity, do you have names for yours, or colors.
Some names, most colors from Visions in Red (dark, short, red/purple), Bridal Veil (white, pretty form), Pumila (late low lavender), Purple Prince (tall light purple here), Rheinland (tall fluffy pink), some other lavenders that really need division and they're about 24" tall.
I am glad I found this conversation. I have a new bed of iris and wanted to interplant columbine with them.
I had also grown poppies in that area and hoped for volunteers for next year.I have seed and will do a controled sow in a spot where the poppies can get as tall as they should.
Here is my question:
Do the annual somnifariums get taller than the TBI's? Are the poppy plants going to be too fully leafed as to distract from the iris?
I love this image from Schreiners #3-#4#5
#1
#2 this is my new iris bed combo with Oberons lavender poppy from this year.
Nice photos - the stuff of which dreams are made.
Have you ever measured the height of somniferum poppies? This may help: http://www.ehow.com/how_7455841_tell-poppies-papaver-somniferum.html
A test patch would be ideal since heights vary so much.
Columbine have smaller faces so I prefer them with irises. I don't want two competing large faces though heads of allium would have a totally different and delightful look and lupines also look good with irises.
Considering your great plants/gardens/photos why not check the dates the somniferum poppies bloom? Seems to me they are more mid to late June when a lot of irises have already bloomed.
Here the poppies, astilbes and the start of the Japanese irises happily bloom together but you can see how the height varies.
If you can't or don't want to establish a separate spot, then I'd suggest you put the poppies behind the irises.
I just checked the link and I will weed out any volunteers with the iris,they would be the wrong color anyway and I am sure they will be 5 feet tall. I agree about Bloomtime I just didnt want subsequent poppy growth to interfere with the iris. I cant grow Lupines or fox gloves.
The images from Shreiners( I didnt take them ) are impressive due to the scope and scale of the acreage. The stately lupines just add to the demention.
I also want columbines for interplanting with lilies.
Yours look great with the iris. Nice to see enchanting effect on a smaller scale.
Maybe you could try some astilbe that will work with your irises. The astilbe will want more moisture so plant them with compost and water crystals. That's no guarantee that they won't dry up in a hot June as we had this summer. All of mine dried up fast - the only exceptions were those in shade.
Thanks for the compliment. All we can do is try to replicate what we see and love since not all of us have 20 acres, thankfully!
I love the Eartheart Gardens Japanese iris (and poppy) fields. They were so breathtaking to see in person.
