Plant portraits

These pages are under development and are being added to as time permits.

This section has been been divided under two main headings.

1. Big perennial blue poppy hybrids and species
   
   
2. The remaining species (and hybrids)
   (a) In cultivation.
   (b) In the wild.                                (under development)

As this section is not complete, we list some plants recommended for particular characteristics. We also comment on sources of plants and seeds.

Specifically, with reference to 2(b) above visitors are invited to contact us (plantmatters@meconopsis.org) if they would like to contribute pictures and information. With the current trend for more people to venture into remoter areas and with the use of digital photography, we could, in this way, build up a very useful library of species as seen in the wild and thus increase our understanding of this genus.

The aim of the pictures on this page is mainly to give a flavour of the beautiful plants to be found within the genus. But additionally, differences between the oft-confused MM. betonicifolia, grandis and 'Lingholm' and the frequent error encountered in the identity of M. regia, are high-lighted.

1. Big perennial blue poppies

For the big perennial blue poppies in this Section, the portraits of the species and hybrids take the form of descriptions, together with photographs of the various stages in the growth-cycles from leaf emergence in spring, through to flowering and finally to fruit-capsule development and seed production (if seeds are produced). All these stages are valuable in determining identities. Emphasis is given on how to distinguish the various species and hybrids.

For an overall description of the big perennial blue poppies, see the supplementary page: General description. The shades of blue are often quite variable and a discussion of this merits a separate supplementary page Colour range.

To view supplementary pages in a window with menus click here first.

Individual portraits are to be found within the Classification outlined below.

• Species:
  MM. betonicifolia, grandis and simplicifolia
• George Sherriff Group
  This Group of sterile hybrids is derived from George Sherriff's 1934 seed collection. There are currently six named cultivars.
• Infertile Blue Group
  MM: x sheldonii, 'Slieve Donard', 'Bobby Masterton', 'Bryan Conway', 'Crewdson Hybrid', 'Mrs Jebb', 'Crarae', 'Maggie Sharp', 'P.C.Abildgaard', 'Cruickshank'
• Fertile Blue Group
  MM. 'Lingholm', 'Kingsbarns'
• Cultivars not assigned to a Group
  MM. 'Keillour', 'Willie Duncan', 'Mervyn Kessell', 'Marit', 'Stewart Annand', 'Mop-head', 'Louise'

The classification scheme is explained fully on the supplementary page Classification and Groups. Reference to other parts of the site will provide additional useful information on the classification scheme. In particular see Introduction to the Genus 4 (Big perennial blue poppies together with supplementary pages Identifying and naming, Name phrase qualifications and Table of approved names. The procedures adopted for attempting to clarify the identities and nomenclature of the big perennial blue poppies is outlined in Study Group.

This section is devoted to the taxonomy, descriptions and histories of the big perennial blue poppies. For a discussion on how to grow them, please refer to Cultivation and Propagation. There is also a short section on Sources below.

Species
Most of the big perennial blue poppies in gardens are hybrids or probable hybrids, with only three species included under this umbrella term.

• M. betonicifolia and variants  At present this is the only species at all common in cultivation. Two variants of the normal blue forms are the long-established white M. betonicifolia 'Alba' and more recently-appearing purple-magenta M. betonicifolia 'Hensol Violet'. M. 'Inverewe' will be be described later.
• M. grandis (Background & History,  Description). This species is rare in cultivation, although plants or seeds given this name are frequently encountered in articles, plant catalogues, seed lists, in nurseries and garden centres and gardens open to the public. The majority of the plants and seeds still so frequently mis-named M. grandis are usually the fertile hybrid M. 'Lingholm' (Fertile Blue Group). Another confusion is with the erroneously named M. grandis GS600 (see M. George Sherriff Group below). Sometimes M. betonicifolia is also mis-identified as M. grandis. Fortunately efforts are being made to make the true species M. grandis more available.
• M. simplicifolia once widely grown, for some unknown reason, is now infrequently encountered.

George Sherriff Group
This is one of three Groups established to accommodate many of the hybrid big blue perennial poppies, and in the past often wrongly named M. grandis GS600. The plants in the Group are essentially sterile (there are occasional reports of fertile seed). We believe that they are derived from George Sherriff's collection of seed in Bhutan in 1934 under the collection number M. grandis GS600 (more correctly, L&S600) and that there are in excess of two dozen distinct clonal entities still growing in gardens. A number of these have been given cultivar names and four have been given awards by the Royal Horticultural Society (in 2005).

The named cultivars are:
M. 'Jimmy Bayne' AM,  M.'Huntfield' AM,  M. 'Ascreavie' PC
M. 'Barney's Blue' AM,  M.'Dalemain',      M. 'Dorothy Renton'.

Although clearly distinct entities, these cultivars show certain similarities (not surprising, really, if they all derive from the same seed collection). Also, each may show quite a variation in flower colour. In the light of these characteristics a number of supplementary pages are devoted to the topics below.

• Background and history.
  An introduction to the George Sherriff Group including historical notes.
• Descriptions of named cultivars.
  Each of the six named cultivars is described. In these descriptions, each is illustrated with a picture of the flowers.
• Developing foliage and fruit capsules.
  The emerging and maturing rosettes of leaves are very helpful in diagnosis. Fruit capsules are also illustrated.
• Notes on the origins of the cultivars.
  As far as is known, the stories behind the named cultivars.
• Additional pictures of flowers.
  A selection of further pictures of flowers. (This supplementary page may be slow to download on a dial-up connection because of the number and size of pictures.)

Fertile Blue Group
The Fertile Blue Group was established to cater for the fertile big perennial blue poppy hybrids. They produce numerous plump, viable seeds thus enabling the production of large numbers of progeny. As a result nurserymen are able to more readily meet the requirements of their customers. It also means that for little cost gardeners can raise a number of plants for their own use. This is in contrast to the sterile hybrids which can only be propagated vegetatively, and thus in relatively small numbers.

For an account of the issues which were involved in the naming of this Group see the supplementary page Naming within the Fertile Blue Group. So far two cultivars have been agreed for plants within this Group. These are M. 'Lingholm' and M. 'Kingsbarns'. M. 'Lingholm' is now quite widely available.

M. 'Lingholm' is discussed on three supplementary pages:

• Description
  All stages in the life-cycle of this cultivar are described and illustrated. There are also some hints on cultivation.
• History 
  The origin of this cultivar in the early 1960s, and an account of its naming and subsequent name changes, are related.
• Botanical identity
  This fertile cultivar arose from a sterile hybrid. It is almost certain that this was due to the chance event of a doubling of its chromosomes. This process is described.

The detailed descriptions of other cultivars in Fertile Blue Group are under development.

Infertile Blue Group
As with George Sherriff Group, the cultivars in Infertile Blue Group are almost all "old", long-lived sterile hybrids either known, or believed, to have been growing, in gardens for many decades. Some cultivars show marked similarities to one another indicating that they are closely related, thus paralleling the position seen in George Sherriff Group. But by comparing the full range of cultivars we have identified, we see an array of larger differences, these obviously reflecting less close relationships.

Each of the currently named cultivars in the Group is described, together with a discussion of its probable relationship to others within the Group. Some have been given awards by the RHS. Historical notes are also given, insofar as we have been able to establish the stories of the cultivars, . All stages of growth can help with diagnoses: i.e. young and mature foliage, flowering-stems, flowers, fruit-capsules and the underground root system - see also supplementary pages Identifying and naming and General description).

The Meconopsis Group has identified more clones than we have so far named. It is important to retain all the clones, clearly identified, in one or more specialist collections. It would be impractical and ill-advised to formally name all of them, but perhaps in future some of the unnamed clones may be deemed sufficiently distinct to be name-worthy.

The named cultivars are described in supplementary pages.
       M. x sheldonii                  M. 'Slieve Donard'            M. 'Bryan Conway'          M. 'Bobby Masterton'
       M. 'Crewdson Hybrid'      M. 'Mrs Jebb'                    M. 'Crarae'                      M. 'Maggie Sharp'
       M. 'P.C. Abildgaard'         M.'Cruickshank'

Cultivars not assigned to a Group
Some cultivars are either so distinct and/or their origin well enough documented that it was not appropriate or necessary to assign them to a Group.
The named cultivars in this category are described in supplementary pages:
        M. 'Keillour',                M. 'Willie Duncan',              M. 'Marit',                       M. 'Stewart Annand',
        M. 'Mervyn Kessell'    M. 'Mop-head'                      M. 'Louise'

Some recommended plants

Species big blue poppies
For the species, the easiest to grow is probably M. betonicifolia; true M. grandis is becoming a little more readily available, but care is needed in obtaining validly named seeds or plants whilst M. simplicifolia appears to be limited in availability at the present time.

Big perennial blue hybrids
If your preference is for as pure a sky-blue as possible, then good choices are:
    MM. 'Lingholm', 'Slieve Donard', 'Bobby Masterton' and
    'Bryan Conway'.
For a consistently deeper, but pure blue,
     MM. 'Mrs Jebb' and 'Crewdson Hybrid'
are to be recommended.
A consistently pale-blue cultivar is:
     M. 'Maggie Sharp'.
For soft mauvy-blue, almost globular flowers:
     M. 'Crarae'

Plants within George Sherriff Group appear to be the forms that are usually most variable in colour, ranging on occasion from a deep, pure blue to a more lilacy-blue or purple at other times, or in other gardens etc. For many people these are attractive and desirable features. Examples are MM. 'Jimmy Bayne', 'Huntfield', 'Dalemain', 'Ascreavie' and 'Dorothy Renton'.

Two other cultivars are unusual in being consistently bicoloured. These are M. 'Barney's Blue' (George Sherriff Group) and M. 'Keillour'.

Others
Meconopsis other than the "big blues" include the perennial forms
  M. quintuplinervia and M. x cookei 'Old Rose'
The latter is an excellent new introduction raised by a member of The Meconopsis Group.

The following monocarpic non-blue forms may be more readily obtainable, if not as plants, then by raising from seed.
M. napaulensis (of Hort), M. paniculata, M. punicea, M. prattii (often known in gardens as M. horridula, which is not strictly correct), M. pseudointegrifolia, M. integrifolia (seemingly not at all commonly grown at present, although it was a number of years ago) and M. superba.

Finally it must be pointed out that this list is not exhaustive. Also, extensive enquiries have indicated that despite the fairly common listing of M. regia as plants or seeds (or labelled as such in gardens), this species is not currently in cultivation, although it was in the past. The plants or seeds at present attributed to M. regia (even by a reputable seed company as in the picture opposite) are undoubtedly hybrids with much greater kinship to M. napaulensis (of Hort.) and/or M. paniculata than to M. regia

Sources
The following is applicable to all members of the genus. Basically, to satisfy the need of gardeners for new plants, two means are available, either from seed or vegetatively by division. For fertile forms which set viable seed, the gardener has the choice of raising plants himself starting with seeds, or of buying commercially seed-raised young plants from a nurseryman or garden centre. For the sterile hybrids, the only way is to divide one's own plants, or, to obtain new forms for the garden, to buy vegetatively propagated pot-grown plants. Occasionally, plants lifted from the open-ground may be available.

Pictures taken at specialist nurseries.
Left: Vegetative propagation of sterile cultivars of big blue poppies in a polytunnel.
Right: Uniformly fine plants of M.'Lingholm' raised from seed.

1. Seeds
Meconopsis have the reputation for being difficult to raise from seed. This is perhaps only partly justified as some people seem to have no problem with plants such as M. betonicifolia or M. 'Lingholm'. However, quality of seed has been called into question, and we have been performing controlled trials to test for success in germination. It appears that the way to achieve best results is to harvest and carefully store home-harvested seed (see Cultivation and Propagation 3. Raising from seed). It is possible to obtain a wider range of species from the seed exchanges of specialist societies such as The Meconopsis Goup, The Scottish Rock Garden Club, the Alpine Garden Society and the North American Rock Garden Society. To take part in these exchanges it is necessary to be a member of the society.

A more limited number of forms can be obtained by mail-order or on-line from seed companies. Although seeds from these sources often seem to be less successful than home-collected seed, they appear to give better germination than those from garden centres, even if supplied by the same seed company. There is less choice in forms available from garden centres and such seed often disappoints by failing to germinate at all. This is presumably due to the environment prevailing in garden centres being rather hostile to retention of seed viability, or maybe is due to seed being stocked on the shelves for too long.

2. Pot-grown plants
The alternative to growing one's own plants from seed is to buy established young plants in pots. Open-ground material may sometimes be available. Most commonly found are M. betonicifolia, M.'Lingholm' and maybe a few other forms from garden centres and the sales tables of "Meconopsis-rich" gardens open to the public For the rarer, sterile clonal cultivars of the big perennial blue poppies it is usually necessary to obtain them from specialist nurseries and other nurseries listed in The Plant Finder. Fortunately, the range of cultivars being offered by specialist nurseries is slowly but steadily increasing since the identities and names have now been largely sorted out in the last ten years. Some nurseries are happy, on request, to grow a given cultivar to order if it is not already available from stock. The specialist nurseries usually also aim to stock a few of the rarer species.