California Poppy

I am interested in some concurrence or clarification on the following: I have heard that the California Poppy that one purchases in the nursery is not the same as that found in the wild, due to legal restrictions on its cultivation. Yet, there are apparently many varieties available that one can plant, some of which sound like those found in the wild. This is a bit of trivia that I have not yet found on the web; any further input is much appreciated!

-- Bill Fereira </p>

The whitish form of California poppy is fairly common with the orange flowered, inland form of the plant. On the coast, where we have the yellow flowered form formerly var. martitima, I have seen only one pale form - an exquisite palest apricot. Its seedlings have all been yellow so far.

Anyway, I don't know where you live, but Barbara Worl of Bell's Books in downtown Palo Alto used to collect and sell the seeds of the white poppy. I am sure they were available commercially at one time, as I have seen them used in gardens by landscapers. The Western Horticultural Society on the SF Peninsula or Cal Hort in San Francisco might have some info.

I do recall Barbara saying that you just collect seeds from the white poppies and destroy all orange ones. Keep doing that for a few generations, and you end up with mostly white ones. Of course, you must be really rigorous about ripping out the orange flowered plants, which must not be allowed to pollinate the white ones or set any seed!

Good luck,

Lori</p>

What you were told is true. The poppies that I see in the wild are completely different than what is sold on through cataloges.I've tried Larner seed and Pacific Coast seed with none of the yellow that I find along the coast! I suggest that you get a collector's license which would allow you to collect the seeds from your area. Poppies sure need it as the orange ones are stronger genetically which would interfere with establishing a truly native poppy.

Richard Bach</p>