10 of the best poppy varieties that grow in all types of soil These early summer flowers always bring colour and pizzazz to the party and thrive in many different garden situations 23 May 2021 • 5:00am Want to grow your own wildflower meadow? These effortless flowers are guaranteed to offer beautiful colour every summer Credit: Andrea Jones / Garden Exposures Poppies are glorious flags of colour in the early summer garden, and they are starting to flower now. When we talk of poppies we usually think of the scarlet poppies in a cornflower meadow or of the big, blousy oriental poppies in sunny borders, but there are poppies for many different garden situations, even damp woodlands.