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Welsh Poppy

©Richard Burkmarr

Welsh poppy

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Scientific name: Meconopsis cambrica
The Welsh poppy is a plant of damp and shady places, roadsides and hillsides. It is also a garden escapee. It flowers over summer, attracting nectar-loving insects.

Top facts

Stats

Height: up to 50cm

Conservation status

Common.

When to see

June to August

About

The yellow Welsh poppy is a perennial plant of damp, shady, hilly or rocky places, and is also found on walls and roadsides. It is native in damp woodlands in South West England and Wales, but widespread in many other places as a garden escapee. It flowers from June to August, and attracts pollinating bees and insects. It is an ideal plant to brighten up a shady corner in a garden as it self-seeds and spreads freely.

What to look for

The Welsh poppy has four, overlapping, yellow petals borne on a thin, green stem. The only other yellow poppies are the Californian poppy, a garden escapee with much more delicate leaves; the Yellow horned-poppy, which grows on the seashore; and the Greater celandine, which has numerous smaller flowers.

Where to find

Native in South West England and Wales, but widespread as a garden escapee.

Habitats

Did you know?

The Welsh poppy is the logo of the Welsh political party Plaid Cymru.