Indoor grow Poppies flowering early?

[Bobsten]

Hi I’m growing a few poppies (Flanders red) in a grow tent under my house because they need to be ready for a wedding on February 8th.
I have attached a couple of pictures, one shows the early poppy at around the 25th of November, the next shows the poppy as it is today (22nd of December)
I didn’t think the poppy would start flowering for a little while which is why I started growing so early.

Should I be removing the early flowers as to keep growing the flowers and hope that the flowers come back around the time of the wedding? Or is it normal to have flowers this early and they should keep flowering to the wedding date?

Its been a hot summer in Melbourne Australia and the grow tent has been kept at a consistent 22-24 degrees Celsius, which I know is too hot for early poppies but’s it’s as good as I could get it. I’ve also been giving LED lighting to the plants for 18 hours and keeping it dark for 6 hours every day. The LED lighting if very good and expensive but it produces a lot of heat as well but I have an exhaust fan and 2 oscillating fans continuously blowing colder air around the grow tent.

Let me know if any thoughts you guys have regarding what I should be doing in order to get my perfect Flanders red poppy for the 8th of February.

Thanks!

 

[oneeye]

Wow friend, your plants look very healthy, you are doing a super job growing them. It mostly depends on the type of poppy you have. If you are growing annuals then their growing cycle is from 60 to 120 days. "Oriental poppy" can grow for years in the right conditions.

I wouldn't run an 18/6 photoperiod for poppies. A 12/12 photoperiod will do the same as an 18/6 photoperiod but at less cost and heat. IF you had those plants over 60 days they will flower automatically if they are 60-day annuals. I would not remove any flowers unless they are finished and the petals fall off. Poppies are not really suited for growing indoors, especially in a lot of heat, but you are doing a good job. Keep us posted friend on how they turn out and thanks for sharing your garden with us.