How to Grow Matilija Poppy (Romneya Coulteri)

Hi, this is Yolanda Vanveen, and in this segment, we're going to learn all about the matilija poppy, or matilija poppy, and it's from California. It's a gorgeous tree poppy that's easy to grow. The romneya coulteri, or the California tree poppy, is from Southern California in the United States. And it's a small to medium size shrubby perennial that's related to poppies. It has strong stems that really multiply, and it's silvery-grey foliage, which is really, really pretty. The flowers are beautiful -- they look like paper roses. And they have large, white flowers, which are crumpled so they look like crepe, and they bloom summer through autumn. There's one variety called butterfly that has small, pure white, ruffled petals and then one called white cloud that has large, white flowers, and they all have a yellow center. So they look so much like poppies, that it's sometimes hard to tell them apart. So the matilija poppy is hearty from zones seven to ten, so they can really go down to even probably 10 degrees. They can handle a lot of cold temperature and still survive. And you can start them by seed in the spring, or you can take a division and start them in the fall or the spring or the winter -- any time of the year -- and they'll come up in bloom every summer. And they're just a gorgeous, gorgeous addition to your garden.