They don't usually grow well for me either. I broadcast the seeds and if I'm lucky a handful will bloom ok. I think it might be too hot and humid here. There's literally fields of them growing around Big Sur. I remember a park ranger yelling at me because I picked a few seed pods. lol

I wintersowed them in a 1 gallon jug and then planted them in a cement pot where they baked all day in the sun. They either self-seeded, or wintered over, because they came back the next year. Maybe they need really dry soil to be happy?