Poppy Flanders Red

No introduction needed. The Flanders Poppy is the defining image of the British countryside — delicate, paper-thin cups of vibrant scarlet red fluttering on tall, wiry stems, each flower lasting only a day but produced in such profusion that a patch will be a sea of red for weeks.

A native hardy annual of extraordinary resilience, its seeds can lie dormant in UK soil for decades, springing back to life whenever the ground is disturbed. Scatter it into bare earth and it will do the rest. Listed on the RHS Plants for Pollinators — a vital source of pollen for bees and hoverflies through the height of summer.

• Papaver rhoeas — Native Hardy Annual (H7)
• Height: 60–75cm | Flowers: June–August
• Approximately 700 seeds per packet — sow direct, do not cover
• Full sun; thrives in poor, well-drained soil
• Thin to 20cm apart; self-seeds prolifically
• RHS Plants for Pollinators listed

Pair it with Cornflower Blue Ball and Oxeye Daisy for a cornfield meadow that hums with life all summer.