First Light
On the Generous, Radiant Life of the Iceland Poppy

By Debra Kaye of Bear Creek Farm

There is a moment each spring—tender, unhurried—when the Iceland poppy opens its first bloom, and something in the garden shifts. The petals emerge crumpled from their papery sheath, like pages of a letter long kept folded, and then, with the morning warmth, they smooth themselves open: white, cream, the palest peach, a deep and unapologetic red. A full range of feeling, from the gentlest blush to the most ardent declaration. We remain faithful to the seasons here, and the poppy is the flower that opens the year for us— the first to be cut, the first to fill a vase, the first to sit on a table and say: spring is here. There is something of the morning in it—not the morning that is over quickly, but the long, light-filled mornings of early spring that seem to hold time still. The poppy shares that quality: once its season begins, it gives generously and without hurry. That the poppy is both jubilant and delicate—exuberant in its colors, fine as silk in its petals—is not a contradiction but a kind of wisdom. It asks us to be present. To not defer the vase on the table, the flowers on the desk, the single stem placed where it will catch the afternoon light. You can purchase Iceland poppies and so much more at Bear Creek Farm in Stanfordville. —bearcreekfarm.com

A few notes for those who grow and gather: 
● Plant in autumn, so roots establish through winter and are ready to bloom at the first
warmth of spring. Iceland poppies ask for little: well-draining soil and modest fertility—
overfeeding encourages leaf at the expense of flower.

● For cutting, harvest when the bud is just cracking open—when color first shows at the
tip. Immediately sear the stem end to seal the milky sap; this single step is the difference
between a vase that lasts three days and one that lasts a week or more. Change the
water every few days and keep the arrangement cool at night.

● If you are buying rather than cutting, ask your grower whether the stems have been
properly sealed. A good flower farmer will have attended to this already, and those
poppies, handled with care from field to hand, will open slowly and faithfully—one ruffled
petal at a time.