GLIMMER IN THE GARDEN
Tales of the California Poppy
The California poppy is known by many names—golden poppy, cup of gold, flame flower, dormidera (the sleepy one), and thimble of gold. Whatever you call it, this striking plant has a history, lore, and mystique that adds to its allure.
The plant remained nameless to the scientific world until 1816. That’s when the Rurik, a Russian ship on a three-year exploratory journey around the world, stopped in the San Francisco Bay to restock supplies. Aboard the ship were botanist Adelbert von Chamisso and naturalist Johann Friedrich Gustav von Eschscholtz. The two cultivated a deep friendship and explored the region together while the ship was restocking. On their outings, the golden-flowered California poppy caught their eye. In honor of his friend, Chamisso named the bloom Eschscholzia californica.
Ten years later, plant collector David Douglas gathered seeds of the California poppy in southern Oregon and sent them to the Royal Horticultural Society in England. After increasing their supply, the society released the seeds to the public. The flower was embraced as a favorite by English gardeners who were hungry for exotic plant materials from abroad.
Designated the state flower in 1903, the California poppy is useful both for public relations and environmental management. Today, state and local municipalities include the seeds in erosion control mixtures along roadsides and in restoration projects. In these ecological applications, the poppy is worth its weight in gold.
Long before the explorers came, indigenous peoples prized these plants for their medicinal and nutritive properties. They dried the aboveground parts of the plant when in flower and ground them into a powder to relieve headaches and stomachaches, aid sleep, and reduce anxiety. Today, tinctures are available and used to soothe and calm the nervous system.
California poppies flourish in open, sunny spots. The plant’s long tap roots (an aid to drought-tolerance) do not like to be disturbed, so you’ll have best success if you sow the seeds directly where you’d like them to grow. Scatter the small, bead-like seeds in the fall, ensuring they make contact with the soil by tamping down the area where you’ve strewn the seeds and then watering.
The seeds should germinate in ten to fifteen days. By the time the first frost occurs, the seedlings will be well enough established to survive winter cold. By spring, the seemingly delicate flowers will have developed long, robust tap roots full of food and water, all set for the spring flush of bloom.
Reap the spoils of your own gold rush by growing a bit of California history in your home garden.
Partner + Plant
For extra drama in your composition, partner the golden poppies with the blue-flowering California native, arroyo lupine. The lupines are annuals that grow about two-feet tall and produce upright spikes of deep-blue and white blooms. Like California poppies, they are prolific reseeders. You’ll find this poppy-lupine combination growing wild on the inland hills of California, where they cover vast open areas.
Water-wise wonders, California poppies do well in container gardens, mixed beds, rock gardens, and as a front-of-the border display. In full sun, they’ll give you a long-lasting show of golden cupped flowers that close up on cloudy days and at night. To extend flowering, deadhead the faded blooms early in the season. When the season wanes, leave some flowers to go to seed and self-sow to ensure they return the following year.
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Written by Catriona Tudor Erler
Photography provided by Henk Hulshof/iStock/Getty Images