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Meconopsis aculeata

Thorny Satin Poppy

Family PapaveraceaeGenus Meconopsis

Sky-blue poppies with yellow stamens on bristly stems, rooted at the foot of a granite boulder
The whole plantBob Witlox, aka Himalaja at en.wikipediaCC BY 3.0

About the plant

What it is and where it grows — not part of any germination protocol.

Habit
monocarpic perennialPlants of the World Online
Flower
Dark purplish, blueFlora of Pakistan
Native range
Tibet, West HimalayaGBIF Backbone Taxonomy

Toxicity is noted only where a source states it. No note here is not a finding of safety.

Sources: Plants of the World Online — Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew; Flora of Pakistan — S. I. Ali and M. Qaiser (eds.); GBIF Backbone Taxonomy — Global Biodiversity Information Facility.

Worth knowing

  • This blue, thorny poppy of the western Himalayas in Pakistan and India was described by Royle in 1833. In Ladakh it is called tsersnon and is used in Sowa-Rigpa, the Amchi system of traditional medicine. The Ladakh administration has proposed it as the region's state flower. Wikipedia: Meconopsis aculeata

This source reports two treatments. Both are shown.

Protocol 1

DerivedN. C. Deno, 1993

Difficulty Moderate Rated by us, not by the source.

Start around March 1, 2027 for a May 3 last frost.

  1. Sow and cover

    Temperature: 70°F 21°C Light: light

No stated waiting before sowing. Then 35 days to germinate.

64% germination in 21–35 days.

Seed Germination Theory and Practice, 2nd ed. — N. C. Deno, 1993 · Ch. 20, Meconopsis p. 177Public domain
Show the original text
Meconopsis (Papaveraceae). M. aculeata germ. 70L(64% in 3-5 w) and none in 70D, 40-70L, or 40-70D. A 7 w period in 70D was fatal.
Seed Germination Theory and Practice, 2nd ed., Ch. 20, Meconopsis p. 177. Quoted exactly. Every value on this card comes from this record, except the difficulty rating, which is ours; the step names come from a fixed list.

Protocol 2

DerivedN. C. Deno, 1993

  1. Sow and cover

    Temperature: 70°F 21°C Light: dark

No stated waiting before sowing.

0% germination.

Nothing germinated at 70.

Seed Germination Theory and Practice, 2nd ed. — N. C. Deno, 1993 · Ch. 20, Meconopsis p. 177Public domain
Show the original text
Meconopsis (Papaveraceae). M. aculeata germ. 70L(64% in 3-5 w) and none in 70D, 40-70L, or 40-70D. A 7 w period in 70D was fatal.
Seed Germination Theory and Practice, 2nd ed., Ch. 20, Meconopsis p. 177. Quoted exactly. Every value on this card comes from this record; the step names come from a fixed list.

How each step is done, in Deno’s words, and what Verified and Derived mean.

Germination trials

Readers’ own records of sowing this species, published after review. Share your trial · All trials

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