Macleaya cordata Flamingo

Macleaya cordata 'Flamingo' is a superb variety of Plume Poppy, awarded in England for its ornamental qualities and performance in the garden. Even more decorative than the wild species, this voluptuous perennial with its airy flowers, seduces with its ample and lobed foliage in a soft grey-green and its magnificent summer flowering in creamy to peachy pink panicles, which fade beautifully. The plume poppy is perfect in the back of a bed, in association with other giant airy plants, in a natural garden.

Native to China and Japan and belonging to the Papaveraceae family (like poppies), Macleaya cordata is also known as "Plume poppy" among English speakers, due to the appearance of its flowers. It is a herbaceous perennial with a woody base and rhizomatous roots of great vigour. The plant spreads rapidly thanks to its trailing roots, which makes it suitable for large spaces. Flowering takes place in summer, in July-August, in the form of large feathery panicle inflorescences that persist for a long time on the plant. The flowers are tiny but numerous, and composed of two sepals forming a cream-white calyx, which then tints pale salmon or peachy pink. The stems of this plume poppy, covered with a whitish bloom, contain yellow latex. They bear large alternate leaves resembling those of heucheras or annual poppies, divided into 5 to 7 rounded lobes. The leaves are a pale gray-green colour. The plant easily self-seeds in moist soil, but does not always produce plants identical to the mother plant. The plume poppy is deciduous, its above-ground vegetation dies and dries in winter to re-emerge from the ground in spring. It is perfectly hardy, at least down to -15°C (5°F).

In the garden, this voluptuous perennial thrives in full sun, sheltered from strong winds, in ordinary but deep, well-drained, and moist soil. Its substantial growth is perfect for quickly creating beautiful volume at the back of a bed. In the garden, Macleaya cordata Flamingo can be placed on its own as its beauty is sufficient, or alongside other towering perennials with strong personalities such as Purple Eupatorium, Giant Bronze Fennel, or Gunnera manicata. It also looks stunning with Red Castor Oil Plant 'Carmencita', at the back of beds composed of more modest-sized perennials such as daylilies, peonies, hyssops, and echinaceas, for example.