Poppies

When I lived in the UK I would often visit a community garden.

It was in the south of England on chalky cliff land overlooking the sea.

This garden was full of vegetables and flowers and changed with all the seasons.

When we decided to leave the Uk I had one final visit to this lovely little garden.

It was the time of year when not many flowers were left blooming most had died by now.

In one large flower bed blowing in the wind on their tall stems were poppies with their dried flower heads.

I removed a dried flower head from its stem.

I held the dry soft brown flower head up in my hand and lightly shock it .

Hearing all the hundred tiny seeds in side rattling on its sides.

Nature,s own tiny maraca perfect for a little fairy .

perfect it also fills me with joy.

hearing its little tinkling sound as I carried on shaking it in my hand and holding it up to the sunlight to see all those different shades of brown within it.

With me a had a plastic lunchbox now empty .

So I decided to collect a few of those dried poppy heads.

On returning home later that day. I shock the poppy seeds from the dried flower heads. In 2 brown paper envelopes licked them shut and wrote poppy seeds on the front.

Over 2 years later here in my new home in Ireland I heavily sprinkled the seeds in pots and some in the garden.

Now we have self sown poppies in random places most years but we love them.

I save the flower heads here and my collection of seeds growing every year.

This year we have made some raised flower beds and I will at some point sprinkle those with the hope of more poppies jumping up within and most likely in other places also.

There at least 18 different poppies I only seem to have about 4 different ones at present but over time who knows my collection may grow.