Poppies DO Have Fall Foliage

I nearly pulled my newly planted Oriental Poppy out of the ground this morning. I had the unfamiliar, but weedy-looking, leaves gathered neatly in my hand and was just about to give it a good yank when I realized that I had planted a bare-root poppy here only a few weeks ago. I checked the locations of the other two roots and found similar leaves emerging.

These are my first poppies. I remember reading that they die back during the summer and re-emerge in the fall, but I didn't expect growth on my just planted bare roots. I suppose this is a sign that my roots were received in good condition.

I'm still a little rattled from the near miss, though. Maybe I should stick my tags in the ground after all.