“It’s flowers were flawless, of that intense almost luminous turquoise blue one associates with the clear atmosphere of the roof of the world”
Frank Kingdon-Ward; English Botanist (1885-1956)
Imagine being surprised by brilliant patches of intense blue flowers blowing in the winds at the top of the world, thousands of feet above sea level, in harsh climates and humid air and imagine still, these delicate flowers with petals as thin as tissue paper surviving wild winters and cool summers, completely untended - except by Nature herself.
Of course this never deterred gardeners from all over the world from making superhuman attempts to grow them in gardens from Scotland and Britain to Iceland; from Western to Eastern Canada, and the United States. Of course the botanical gardens had more success than urban gardeners but that has never stopped the obsessions and the superhuman efforts to grow them.
I have become one of those gardeners.
A few weeks ago, I purchased the magical blue poppy plant at our Garden Show in Ontario.
For the first few days, I just sat and
watched it - almost by the hour; its
hairy bud opening a crack, showing a
deep purple tiny petal edge.
Then it opened those papery petals that changed from that intense blue we associate with this poppy, to a soft, almost transparent pale mauve ....
…….and then to the deep navy and brown of the dying petals.
It was, and is still a source of magic for me.
But when all is said and done, I need to find a way to make it grow in my own south-central, sea- level Ontario, zone 5a garden. No mean feat, so every well-meaning gardener tells me. They tell me to treat it as a beautiful object and not expect it to produce more flowers, or to even live long enough to produce.
But I am determined.
My research led me to the Meconopsis Group at www.meconopsis.org
Here is a wealth of information on every aspect of this phenomenon. And yet, no guarantees, no promises or hundreds of success stories.
And still, I am mesmerized. I want it to grow in my garden. But there is much to learn. This
Tibetan blue poppy of mine is actually called Meconopsis baileyi.
HISTORY:
It was discovered by Col. Frederic Marshman Bailey in 1913 in the SE corner of Tibet. Another similar plant was found in the NW Yunnan by a French Missionary in 1886 but the name baileyi was applied to both of them until the 1930’s when the name M. betonicifolia was re-introduced as it was discovered first. Baileyi became synonymous until 2009 when the two species were considered quite separate; so now, despite disagreements among some experts, the Meconopsis Group recognizes the M.baileyi is endemic to SE Tibet and M.betonicifolia, to the NW Yunnan.
TIBETAN BLUE POPPY’S UNIQUE FEATURES:
It has an elongated seed pod that opens lengthwise; other poppies have little lids that cover the seed pod.
Blue is a very rare colour for flowers. Some say that a soil that has a pH lower than 7 (acidic soil) will intensify the colour blue. But some Meconopsis colours vary from mauve to blue to purple.
I still have a lot to learn and am searching for the best place in my garden. I have been in touch with Patricia Gallant at the Reford Gardens (www.refordgardens.com) on the south shore of the St. Lawrence river near Metis. The garden's founder was Elsie Reford and was successful in growing drifts of this poppy.
I was also in touch with the Buchardt Gardens in Vancouver as they have also been successful in growing them.
They need a combination of peat, compost and sand - for good drainage as they don't like their feet wet, but also needing protection from winds and hot sun. They love cold and deep snow as in the Himalayans.
My Black Walnut will not be a good companion for this treasure. I am debating whether to harvest the seeds when they mature or to plant it (if it ever warms up here) and let the seeds fall where they may.
Decisions, decisions.
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