Top of the poppies! Nothing says spring to Monty Don like his oriental poppies in full bloom – and now’s the time to plant them for a glorious show next year

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Monty revisits one of his classic books, Gardening at Longmeadow, in an occasional series.

There is always a delicate, silky revelation that tells me spring has evolved into summer. This usually takes place somewhere around Whitsun when the weather seems to be poised at that apex of benign lushness that makes Britain in May the most beautiful place in the world. 

But come rain, chill winds or burning sun, my personal measure of this seasonal shift is that moment when the oriental poppies first come into flower.

I don’t think any other plant produces a flower that is so saturated in colour yet manages to balance this with the garden burgeoning around it. The twirled cone of flower emerges from the downy green bud and the petals leisurely unfurl from a ruckle of slinky silk. 

Monty shared his advice for thriving poppies, as he reveals now is the perfect time to sow seeds. Pictured: ‘Patty’s Plum’ 

For three weeks the poppies dominate the perennial borders then collapse like revellers at dawn.

Now is the perfect time to sow the seeds, scattering them on the soil, or to plant plugs or container-grown poppies in your borders, though plants grown from seed won’t reach full flowering glory until next year.

It is always a race to see which opens first, the huge crimson flowers with a black blotch at the base of each petal of ‘Beauty of Livermere’ in the Jewel Garden or the smoky mauve petals of ‘Patty’s Plum’ in the Walled Garden. Both take centre stage.

The flowers of the natural Papaver orientale are a bright orange, and the now familiar range of pinks, oranges, whites, reds and plum has only been available since 1906, when nurseryman Amos Perry noticed a pink form among his red seedlings that he named ‘Mrs Perry’. 

He went on to breed the first white oriental poppy, ‘Perry’s White’. (A more unquestionable monochrome, ‘Black and White’, is even more starkly delineated, with its deep-black central blotch.)

Since then, scores of varieties have been raised covering every permutation of red, pink and orange. 

Monty revealed he shears his poppies back as soon as they finish flowering. Pictured: 'Beauty of Livermere’

As well as ‘Beauty of Livermere’, we grow ‘Ladybird’ – which has enormous vermilion flowers, often very early – and ‘Pizzicato’. These are short, so good for the front of the border, and each plant will produce a range of colours from white to dark red. 

We support the poppies before they come into flower because the heavy leaves and big, fat flowers can flop dramatically. 

As soon as they finish flowering I shear them back to the ground and put all the existing leaves on the compost heap. This lets in light, air and water, and they then regrow to give a second flowering later in the summer. 

It also makes space that can be filled with a tender annual that’ll have enough time to get established before the poppy foliage begins to regrow.

Although they grow easily from seed, self-sown seedlings are usually a muddy colour so it’s better to lift the plants in autumn, divide them with a spade and replant the pieces. 

They will start growing immediately and overwinter with small leaves before taking off with fresh vigour in early spring.

They also take easily from root cuttings. Cut straight sections of root into 8-10cm lengths, the thickness of a pencil. Insert these vertically into a gritty compost mix so the top is just below the surface. 

Water and place in a cool greenhouse or coldframe. They will be ready to pot up individually the following spring.  

Half-hardy annuals add colour, structure and glamour to the garden until the first frosts. 

Your kitchen garden: Peas

Always avoid sowing peas in cold, wet soil or they can rot. A double row 23cm wide with each 10-12cm apart is best. 

Either prepare the soil finely and simply push the peas into the ground, or draw a shallow drill with a wide hoe, place the peas along it, then rake the soil back over them. Leave at least 1m between each row to walk and pick the pods. 

For support, I like to use pea sticks – any kind of twiggy brushwood will do, though hazel is best. Netting or chicken wire works well if supported by bamboo canes woven into the wire and pushed into the ground. 

A how to sow half hardy annuals short variety like ‘Kelvedon Wonder’ will only grow to 90cm-1.2m; a taller one like ‘Alderman’ can reach over 2m so needs substantial support. 

Although you shouldn’t let peas dry out as they grow, the important time to water them is once they flower, to encourage pea-filled pods. 

Pick the pods as soon as they are large enough to open, which will encourage more pods to develop. ‘Alderman’ is unbeatable when it comes to flavour, but I also grow ‘Hurst Green Shaft’ and ‘Carouby de Maussane’; ‘Kelvedon Wonder’ is ideal for small gardens as it is a dwarf variety with good flavour.