Growing Matilija Poppies
Matilija poppies, or Romneya coulteri for my purest friends, has the largest flower of any poppy. It’s native to dry, sunny areas from California to Baja. The flower petals are bright with yellow-orange stemains in the center that look just like a golf ball. The flowers also measure 6+ inches across and usually begin in late March and can continue until August, given a bit of water. So, how do you get them started, and how do you take care of them? They have a bad reputation of being both difficult to start and invasive. The latter can actually be true.

To start them growing properly there are just 4 rules to follow:
1. Take them out of the nursery container and place them in the hole without breaking the rootball. Breaking the rootball is pretty much instant death.
2. Plant them in fall or winter- you’ll have much better luck getting them established. This is true of most natives, too.
3. Plant them in a sunny spot at or above the level of the surrounding soil, and water.
4. Water them 1x per week and no more to get them started.
If you can only remember the first two points, you’re 90% on your way!
The rest of the “care” is pretty easy, there isn’t much. There are some “what some people do” sorts of things to note that will make them look better and flower longer. Some people give them a good soaking monthly even after they’re established. That extends the flowering time. Some people cut them back in fall or winter and that makes them look a lot neater. As soon as they are cut back, new clean growth starts quickly.
They indeed can be aggressive, so give them room, especially when planting them in sandy soil.
There, done.

Well, you have to divide your PCI’s at the right time of year. In Southern California that’s between mid November and early January. I’ve tried doing this earlier and later and it doesn’t work. I’m embarrassed to admit I’ve done this more than once. You’re almost ready for action. I would water your irises a couple of days before you divide them to stimulate some root growth. Next, dig them up from the outside and try pulling them up intact in one large clump. Shake the dirt then wash off with a garden hose; you can’t let the roots dry out. Place the large clump on a table and divide them. It’ll be really easy to see where they should be divided. You’ll see individual rhizomes, which tells you where to divide/tear. Now take the pieces that you’ve separated and let them sit in a solution of 1% to 2% bleach and water for 5 minutes or so. Rinse off the bleach and water then let them sit in a bucket of water while they are waiting to be planted. You want to plant within an hour or so.

Ready to plant! PCI’s in Southern California need to be planted in a shady place. You can plant them back in your garden or a container. In either case the soil needs to drain really well and you have to plant “high” so the water doesn’t drain and sit in the crown or they will rot. You can incorporate a bit of bone meal into the planting mix or some time release fertilizer. Read the label on the fertilizer and divide by 2. Now water!!!!!! You want keep up the watering about 1x per week so they don’t get too wet but they don’t dry out. If it rains you’re most likely off the hook for between 1 and 2 weeks. And you should also get flowers from about half of your new divisions in the first spring.

The monarchs will start coming to your garden in April and you’ll have several generations in your garden ending in late fall. That’s when the last generation flys down to Mexico. Here are a few pictures of what you will be seeing:

These are pretty much the 4 stages of live action: 1) monarch laying eggs 2) caterpiller eating the milkweed 3) chrysalis 4) chrysalis about the hatch-not the outline of the wings becoming clear. For more info. please go to : http://www.monarch-butterfly.com/

or see our own video “caterpillar vs milkweed” on youtube: