Growing poppies from seed...HELP!!!

Ok... this is my third attempt (season) in trying to grow poppies from seed... what am I doing wrong??? They do nothing.

I use the same mix of peat and potting soil as I use for all my seeds. I keep them moist. I sew them on top of the soil... as I do with all seeds that size. When I water, I mist them gently. They are in the shade 100% of the time... but get indirect sunlight. The temps here are mild... lowest around 50 at night often warmer. What am I doing wrong. I really love these things but I can't seem to get any kind going. I no troubles growing anything else. What's the key?

Please help!!

Donna

What are the daytime temps? Poppies don't like to sprout in warmth. They like it cold for sprouting. Optimal germination temp for them is 55F.

Daytime temps are in the 70's.

I can put them in the fridge... j/k....

Donna

Well, with Papaver somniferum, you will get basically no germination at 80F, and the closer to that you get, the less germination. I lived in south Florida and did an experiment once where I stuck a bunch of poppy seeds in jiffy pellets in the fridge, thinking they would germinate in there. They didn't, but they germinated en masse on the kitchen counter in the next two days. So that is one way to go about it there.

Once germinated... they'll go through summer outside okay?

Donna

I don't know about that. Some varieties will; some won't. It's worth a try. Next year, try starting them in November and growing them over the winter.