Papaver somniferum |
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common garden poppy, opium poppy |
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Habit | Plants to 15 dm, glabrate, glaucous. |
Stems | simple or branching. |
Leaves | to 30 cm; blade sometimes sparsely setose abaxially on midrib; margins usually shallowly to deeply toothed. |
Inflorescences | peduncle often sparsely setose. |
Flowers | petals white, pink, red, or purple, often with dark or pale basal spot, to 6 cm; anthers pale yellow; stigmas 5-18, disc ± flat. |
Capsules | stipitate, subglobose, not ribbed, to 9 cm, glaucous. |
Papaver somniferum |
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Phenology | Flowering spring–summer. |
Habitat | Fields, clearings, stream banks, railroads, roadsides, and other disturbed sites |
Elevation | 0-1300 m [0-4300 ft] |
Discussion | Unknown in the wild, Papaver somniferum probably came originally from southeastern Europe and/or southwestern Asia. It has been cultivated for centuries as the source of opium (and its modern derivatives heroin, morphine, and codeine), and also for edible seeds and oil. Various color forms with laciniate and/or doubled petals are grown for ornament. Widely introduced from cultivation and also as a crop weed, it should be expected elsewhere in the flora. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Distribution |
AZ; CA; CT; IL; MA; ME; MI; MN; MO; NC; ND; NH; NJ; NM; NY; OH; OR; PA; TX; UT; VA; VT; AB; BC; MB; NB; NF; NS; ON; QC; SK; Greenland; Europe; Asia [Introduced in North America]
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Parent taxa | Papaveraceae > Papaver > sect. Papaver |
Sibling taxa | |
Name authority | Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 1: 508. (1753) |
Source | Flora of North America vol. 3. |
Web links |
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