The symbol of sleep and death, but also of fertility, opium poppies have been with us since antiquity. They self-sow to bloom each year with flamboyant blossoms and sea green jagged foliage. An essential cottage garden flower, it requires fertile, sandy soils and an early start. Bees of all kinds will seek them out, often jostling each other in competition for the golden pollen. Site in vegetable gardens to attract pollinators, harvest its edible seeds or pick the seed pods on long stems for dried flower bouquets. Caution: green pods contain poisonous alkaloids and are highly toxic if ingested.