All the flowers, none of the fuss

Carnation poppies have taken over Deloris Stiltner's yard, though she's done nothing to encourage the flowers.

By ADRIENNE GOODRICH
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When Deloris Stiltner moved from the country to her home on Colorado Avenue in south Baker City three years ago, there were a few red poppies growing in the yard.

Thinking nothing of the flowers, Deloris and her husband, Jesse, tilled the yard to get rid of weeds.

But the hundreds of little brown seeds from those few poppy plants survived.

The first two years a moderate number of poppies bloomed.

But this spring an entire section of the couple’s front yard is filled with the flowers, all thriving with no help from the Stiltners.

“I’ve had people come down the road and stop,” Deloris said. “It was so beautiful.”

These are not the common orange California poppies, those staples of wildflower mixes sold in stores.

Nor are they the blood-red poppies of “In Flanders Fields” fame.

Stiltner’s flowers are red carnation poppies — so called because their blooms have ruffled petals which make them look like oversized carnations.

“Everybody that goes by wants seeds,” Deloris said, who’s excited about her low-maintenance blooms.

The Baker area is a logical place for the blooms to appear, since poppies like full sun and well-drained soil.

Able to flower in almost any color, carnation poppies usually range from pink to purple. In another corner of her yard, Deloris harbors several pink carnation poppies that also sprouted without any gardening intervention.

Carnation poppies usually grow to a height of three to four feet, with the frilly blossoms varying in size from four to five inches across. 

Poppies are widely known for the opium poppy, but other uses of poppy products are more common, such as poppy seeds in muffins and breads. Most poppies, however, are cultivated for their aesthetic value.

While Deloris is enjoying the flowers, she doesn’t plan on letting quite so many return next year. She promised her husband that he would have a little more lawn to mow — and  a little less flowerbed to weed.

To that end, the couple will pull the plants before they have a chance to scatter their seeds.

Deloris plans on keeping the seeds from the best flowers. They’ll plant those seeds in pre-determined spots rather than allowing the poppies full reign over their property.

“I’m going to save lots of the seeds,” she said.

In the meantime they’ll enjoy the blooms and wait for the seed pods to harden and dry. The poppies should continue to bloom for another month or so, she said.

“By the time I get seeds ripe there will still be some blooming,” she said.