The Welsh Poppy: A Wildflower Worth Celebrating

Last week, I started to see Welsh poppies bloom at the end of my street. The vivid yellow tones stood out amongst the usual pink and purple spring flowers. What makes the Welsh poppy special to me is I grew up with the flower in my grandad’s garden, it was a sight I couldn’t wait to see every spring. I couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate the flower than painting it for my new spring botanical tea towel and wildflower stationery collection. 

The British wildflower, named the Welsh poppy due to being native to the Wales and West region, can be found in a range of yellow and orange hues, from a light lemon shade to vibrant orange. I have been lucky to see quite a few different shades of Welsh poppy growing wild at a local reservoir, pictured below. These were some of the largest and most vibrant I have seen!

Where Can You Find Welsh Poppies? 

Welsh poppies are common in the Wales and the west England region, so you are sure to find them this Spring. The preferred habitat for wild poppies is shaded woodland where they grow well in rocky, damp conditions. I found these poppies pictured above and below on the side of a road we are driving on. It’s woodland habit is not the only place you can find them, however, as they have been long established in towns and villages as ‘garden escapees’. Don’t be suprised to see them growing along walled pavements and public gardens. 

The best time to see Welsh poppies is between the beginning of May to the middle of June, however, I have personally seen them blooming as early as April. 

The Welsh Poppy Design Process

Similar to my other illustrations, the design started from finding these flowers in local woodland. I was so inspired by the colours (and their patriotic name!) that I knew I wanted to include the flower in my most recent release of nature inspired homeware and Welsh poppy cards. 

The placement for the stationery products was heavily inspired by how they appeared growing in the woodland where I took a photo. I believed that how they appeared was the most natural placement, any other way I tried just didn’t look as good!

The textile placement came together seamlessly. I utilised the long winding stems to create a linear pattern - something I hadn’t tried in previous collections. When I put the pattern together I was suprised by how ‘vintage’ inspired it appeared and looked a lot similar to textile pattern styles that were popular in the 70’s.

There can sometimes be many iterations of the design during the process, I originally designed this pattern with a dark green background, a decision I later decided to go against as it was overwhelming the illustrations. This is a decision I’m glad I made and I can’t imagine the design looking any different to how it does now! 

Why is highlighting them important?

You might be thinking, why highlight these flowers if they aren’t in decline? The answer is that I believe all native wildflowers should be appreciated and woodlands across the UK are at risk, so although it’s common in wooded areas today, this flower may not be present in woodlands forever. It would be shame to limit these wildflowers to just parks and gardens! 

As I’ve grown my business I have developed a love for nurturing Welsh culture and also craft, so by illustrating these beautiful flowers I’m not only highlighting a symbol of Wales, but also preserving it in a hand painted style that is increasing lost in the modern day. 

Shop The Welsh Poppy Collection

If you’ve fallen in love with poppies as much as I have, or know someone who is a fan of the vibrant spring bloom, my new collection of wild poppy tea towels and stationery is the perfect nature-inspired addition to the home for you or as a gift to them. Shop the welsh poppy tea towel here. Welsh poppy cards will be released very soon!

My full range of hand painted floral designed products can be found here.

Thank you for reading, if you’ve made it this far let me know if you’ve seen a Welsh poppy recently below!

Sources

I wrote this blog including information and facts available via the North Wales Wildlife Trust website. Please visit their website for more information on Welsh poppies!