Californian Poppy

I resisted boring you with more dandelion clocks hides the vase with the half dozen I picked from the garden and shoves the several hundred shots into a folder but then Ma decided to play cushion Tetris all afternoon which really affected my blipping opportunities. So I plucked a couple of poppies from the front borders and here we are. Not hugely original but nice and bright.

They always make me smile because they remind me of my dearest dad who wasn't even vaguely a plantsman, although he did love a tidy garden. In fact when the children were little he would often try to entertain them by using the garden hoover - only he was so keen on the old tidiness he'd have to empty the bin out to do it.

Anyway, he once rang me in a high state of excitement because these 'exotic' plants had sprung up in his garden...

He was such a lovely man.