Annual Pollinator

Poppy Laurens Grape

Papaver somniferum 'Lauren's Grape' -- bred by Lauren Springer Ogden

£2.20approx. 500 seeds

Deep velvet plum-purple single poppies — the moodiest cottage poppy with saturated grape-coloured cups above silver-blue foliage. Magnificent architectural seed pods.

Sowing months
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Height
90-120cm
Spread
30cm
Spacing
30cm
Position
Full sun is essential for best growth, although they can tolerate light shade.
Soil
They are versatile but thrive in well-drained sandy or loamy soils.
Grow guide
How to grow Poppy Laurens Grape
Read the full guide →
About this variety

Large single cups in a saturated deep plum-purple, the colour of crushed grapes or vintage velvet, held high on slender stems at 75cm to a metre above the silver-blue foliage all the somniferum poppies share. Against that silver the purple has an almost lit quality.

It is a modern variety by poppy standards. An American gardener called Lauren selected and stabilised it in the 1990s, and it has become one of the most photographed things in a cottage border since. The pods that follow are the same big pepper-pot capsules as 'Black Peony' and 'Hungarian Blue', and they are what we grow it for here as much as the flowers; they carry a good deal of our dried work.

Sow direct where it is to flower, because the taproot will not take moving. Surface-sow uncovered, autumn for preference. Thin to 30cm when the seedlings are about 5cm tall, or the plants stay spindly and the flowers come small.

All parts are toxic except the fully dried seed. Keep it from children and pets.

Plant alongside

Poppy Laurens Grape pairs beautifully with these cottage garden classics

RHS Plants for Pollinators

This plant has been assessed by the Royal Horticultural Society and recommended as especially beneficial to bees, butterflies and other pollinators. Growing plants like this directly supports UK pollinator populations — something close to our hearts at Salle Moor Hall Farm, where we see the difference a cottage garden full of the right plants can make.

Learn more at RHS.org.uk →