Mutant Poppies?

Hi - last year (as documented in these pages) I experienced the surprise arrival of Opium Poppies (Papaver somniferum) in my back garden after turning over the soil. So at the end of the season I collected the seeds and planted them and this Spring they grew nicely. Then when they went into bloom this weekend I found not the poppy blooms that I got last year but these weird things. Is this normal?

Yours confused
Gavin.

 

That's them. Nice aren't they. Mine haven't flowered yet this year.

I find you get quite a lot of variation. Some of them are almost singles, some are really frilly like in your pic, and then you get everything in between.

 

Nice one Gavin

 

Ive spotted one today..i thought it would be the norm red opium poppy but it seems to be part black peony that i had last yr aswell
Not as pretty as yours gavin

 

As with everything else in my garden I'm still waiting on mine to flower.

Lovely pictures though.

 

Half my allotment's covered in huge bright scarlet singles with 4 black blotches. Fantastic. A few of those seeds'll be saved.

I think I'll need to do some Eastern European baking with the remainder.

http://themuffintinpost.wordpress.com/2009/09/01/german-pastry-series-mohnkuchen/

 

Ah ok thanks. I'll sleep peacefully now!

 

Man......... my eyesight is getting worse!!! Thought the thread title was mutant PUPPIES!!!!