A Golden Nugget: Wood Poppy
***NEVER remove native plants from the wild. For a list of nurseries that propagate plants contact the Virginia Native Plant Society at www.vnps.org.***
I frequently describe Woodland Poppy (Stylophorum diphyllum) as looking like buttercups on steriods. Also known as Wood Poppy or Celandine Poppy this plant gets about 1 1/2 feet tall and requires shade to flourish. The flowers are up to 2 inches wide and a very bright yellow making it a real treasure in the shade garden. Although blooming peaks in Spring, I've seen random blooms well into the fall.
Sharing this
plant is very easy! It's rhizomes form colonies and can be
divided with little effort. Additionally, once the petals
fall
off, a very hairy seed pod, up to an inch in length, not only looks
interesting (I can't resist touching them!) but releases quite a few
seeds once the pod ripens. The new plants that emerge will
take a
full year before blooming but the leaves on this plant are also
interesting and the blooms are well worth the wait! If you
have a
well maintained shade garden this plant may be considered weedy but I
love it and usually let it grow where it wants. I just share
it
with friends when it starts getting out of control.
The leaves are an added bonus for this plant. The deeply lobed blue-green leaves look similar to oak leaves. Although during droughts this plant may die down to the ground I've never had that problem. The leaves have small hairs which makes it unappealling to deer and rabbits.
This fast growing plant is a great plant for beginner gardeners. You get a lot of impact for very little effort. It rarely suffers from insect damage or disease. It pairs well with other woodland plants such as Columbine, Virginia Bluebells, Ferns, Goatsbeard to name a few.
Through the dancing poppies stole
A breeze most softly lulling to my soul.
- John Keats
Fun Facts: The yellowish-orange sap was used by Native Americans as dye for baskets, clothes and war paint