Poppies are one of the most striking plants in the border in June at Paxton House.  We love the giant oriental poppies (Papaver orientale) with dark bases to their petals; these scarlet ones are ‘Beauty of Livermere’.  They are cousins of the familiar field poppy (Papaver rhoeas) but so over the top they could audition for Ru Paul’s Drag Race. There are several cultivars in the borders at Paxton House; another favourite is the white and purply black flower called, ‘Royal Wedding’. The attractive serrated bristly leaves add texture to the Spring border but will die away after flowering, giving us space for later developing plants to take us into Autumn. Like their wild cousins, these poppies are not the best flowers for picking but wait a bit and the dried seed heads will look marvellous in flower arrangements. Book a gardens ticket here.