Romneya coulteri
Monica Swartz (Sun, 16 Sep 2018 07:34:48 PDT)

Leo, your Romneya will have trouble with your summer heat. The
hottest place I've seen them growing is at UC Riverside (in front of
the Botany department) which gets some pretty high temps, but never
the persistent heat of the desert. They are native to the Santa Ana
Mountains where they get no summer rain but do have some occasional
fog. They don't die back in the summer but stop growing above ground.
Like all poppies, they hate transplantation, but I think you need to
put yours in the ground if it will have a chance to keep the roots
cool enough. An alternative is a clay pot in a sand plunge. Use good
drainage and keep the plant at the same level as in the pot. Don't
cover the roots with mulch but instead plant it behind a big rock so
the base of the plant is shaded in the afternoon. Try to use rain
water since Phoenix tap water is quite salty. Watch for spider mites.
Good luck! monica
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