This year I started them in the greenhouse, but covered them over with a board. seemed to be the key to my success.
I shoved them in (late) in a scrappy bit in front of the polytunnel. Luckily they seem to like it there and have grown well. Just wish I had put more in.
Apparently all poppy seeds are edible, but the advantage to bread seed ones is the fact that the seed head doesn't open so make sit much easier to collect and save them.
I'm looking forward to having these on top of my rolls!
Anyone else grow poppies to eat the seeds? Or collect the seeds from somewhere else?
I do collect seed from those and my oriental poppies. I cut the first batch of the latter down to get them to flower again then harvest those. Sarah Brown has a nice recipe for poppy seed cake:
ReplyDeleteMakes 12 slices
Preparation time less than 30 mins
Cooking time 1 to 2 hours
Ingredients
110g/4oz blue poppy seeds
225ml/8fl oz milk
225g/8oz butter or margarine
225g/8oz light raw cane sugar
3 eggs, separated
225g/8oz plain wheatmeal flour
7.25g/1¼tsp baking powder
Method
1. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4.
2. Line and grease an 20.5cm/8in cake tin.
3. Bring the poppy seeds to the boil in the milk, then turn off the heat and let them soak for 25 minutes in a covered pan.
4. Meanwhile cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.
5. Add the egg yolks, one at a time, and beat them in thoroughly. Mix the flour and baking powder together and fold this into the creamed mixture. Then stir in the soaked poppy seeds and milk.
6. Next, whisk the egg whites until they are stiff and fold them in carefully.
7. Spoon the mixture into the prepared tin and bake the cake for 1 hour or until the centre feels firm and a skewer when inserted into the cake comes out clean.
8. Let the cake stand in the tin for 10 minutes, then turn it on to a cooling rack.
Now that sounds good! Have to see how many I get from these but hope I have enough. Love poppy seed cake! Thanks!
DeleteAnd mine spread so crazy I eventually just yanked them all out. Go figure...
ReplyDeleteMy trouble is I have soem pretty amibitious weeds here that grow better than the poppies!
DeleteSuper photos. I will have to grow some poppies next year.
ReplyDeleteThey're worth it for their beauty alone. I love them.
DeleteMy son in law had a at work drugs test and had a positive trace thanks to heavily poppy seeded bread.
ReplyDeleteI've heard this happen so many times! Luckily I shouldn't have to take a drugs test for my work!
DeleteI love the colour, I've never seen it before. I have the big ruffly red ones, look like giant carnations.
ReplyDeleteEvery now and again this patch is throwing out a white one which looks great with the blacks!
DeleteCommon red poppies grow here (Athens) in Spring so maybe I shall try to grow cultivated poppies in the garden. I hadn't considered it before I saw those photos. Even if we harvest no seed the flowers will be worth it.
ReplyDeleteand I'm fairly sure they're all edible so you could collect those seeds as well to eat.
DeleteI grow these. 1st year I sowed in pots. Most came up. Transplanted to ground.... most died. Following year I waited til late spring and threw seeds on some bare soil. Most have come up, flowered and gone to seed
ReplyDelete