Specific Families and Genera > Meconopsis

Meconopsis flower colour

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Leena:
Does the soil affect Meconopsis colour?
Early this spring I divided my biggest Meconopsis, possibly 'Lingholm', it was grown from seeds maybe 7 years ago.
Half of it stayed in ground and half I potted in ordinary compost from bag with added grit, but the compost had added calcium while the soil in the ground is around pH6 or less.
Now the half in the ground is starting to flower with the same brilliant purplish blue colour as usually, but the ones in pots have flowers with faded dull blue. Not at all like what they were in the ground!

Maggi Young:
Leena, in our experience here in North-East Scotland EVERYTHING can affect the colour of Meconopsis!  :-\
Seriously though, I think it is mainly weather conditions that  change the  colour of the  "Big Blue Poppies". We have found plants exhibiting changing colours from year to year, even in undisturbed plants, well-established in the ground.
How to fix this??  We don't know - we just live with it and hope for better colours next year!

Leena:
Thanks Maggi. :)
I just thought it was strange when the same plant in ground has different colour than in pots, and so thought that perhaps soil had to do with it.

Margaret Thorne:
As Maggi says, lots of things can affect Meconopsis flower colour. Temperature is a very obvious variable factor, they turn more blue in warmer conditions. We often get 2 tone flowers when the petals have been frosted in bud. Sometimes they go a more uniform blue later and sometimes they stay as they are.

Leena:
Thank you Margaret. :)
Here is a picture from week ago comparing the colours. Mother plant is in the back. The plant in pot has been outside in the same weather as the one in the ground.
It is still in pot, I was going to give it in a plant swap but there was a piece of Gentiana triflora in the same clump, which I thought I had got off, but noticed I hadn't when a small Gentiana started to grow again from the side of the Meconopsis. So, I'm going to plant it back in my own garden.

Last winter was very bad and I lost many plants, but Meconopsis survived well, and cool spring and early summer has been good for them.

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