by Open Space Volunteer Wally Wood

CALIFORNIA POPPY (Eschscholzia californica) also known as “The Cup of Gold”

Like the poppy, I, too, was born and raised in California. We both enjoy the outdoors. The poppy is bright and colorful; I, not so much. As spring is upon us, poppies are found everywhere: along our Sycamore Grove trails, on hillsides and in the native garden.

California Poppy Day

April 6 is California Poppy Day! This day was established in 1903 by the California State Floral Society to honor this iconic state flower. These bright orange flowers can be found all over California and are a symbol of resilience and survival. They have become a popular addition to gardens and landscapes. 

A “Pop” of Color

California poppies have a unique physical description owing to their feathery blue-green foliage and bright orange or yellow cup-shaped flowers with a diameter of 2-3 inches. The flowers are composed of four petals that have the ability to close at night or on cloudy days and open again the following morning, although they may remain closed in cloudy weather.

The finely divided leaves of California poppies possess a silvery appearance. These sometimes annual, sometimes perennial plants typically grow to a height of 12-18 inches and are well-suited to dry and sunny environments, thriving in meadows, fields, and even rocky areas. Flowering occurs from February to September.

In some areas of California, the flowers so beautifully blanket the hillsides that it stops traffic on highways and back roads.

 

Medicine,  Movies & More

Traditionally, many Native Americans groups across western North America used California poppy as food and medicine. The poppy killed lice, helped headaches, soothed toothaches, and acted as a painkiller or sedative. In the movie The Wizard of Oz, Dorothy and friends fall asleep in a field of poppies, a reference to the real-life sedative properties of many plants in the Papaveraceae or poppy family (the most famous of which is the Papaver somniferum, aka opium poppy!). The naturally occurring alkaloids in these plants have been sought after by human cultures worldwide for their ability to relieve pain with mild effects in the case of California poppies and their benzylisoquinoline alkaloids, and extreme effects in the case of opium poppy and their morphine and codeine alkaloids. In western North America, some tribes used poultices or infusions made from California poppy to treat external skin conditions, such as sores, cuts, and wounds. The plant's sap contains a yellow-orange pigment that can be used as a natural dye. Some tribes used it to color textiles or other materials.

 

Gold By Any Other Name

Gold is a theme in California symbols: the state colors are blue and gold; the state nickname is “The Golden State”; and gold is the official state mineral. The poppy is also known as the flame flower, la amapola, and copa de oro (cup of gold).

 

Bee Motels

An interesting side note about the poppy: since the flower closes at night, it may act like a motel and have a sleep over guest! All bees rest and sleep an average of 5-7 hours each night. Longhorn bees (Tribe Eucerini) are named for the males’ distinctive, long, fuzzy antennae. The females are solitary ground nesters that return to their tiny burrow each night. Males sleep outside, sometimes spending the night in a poppy flower among other places. Sometimes they will cluster together in a group. This pattern aligns with declining light.

At night, many flowers close up. This movement of plants at night is called ‘nyctinasty’, and, although it is by no means universal, there are lots of other plants besides poppies that close their flowers at night, creating a perfect protected pocket for bees to rest. During colder months, bees may seek out warmer, sheltered areas.

 

Poppy “Water Pumps” Keep Pollen Dry

Most of the flowers that close at night instigate the closure by pumping water out of cells at the base of the petals so that they wilt themselves shut. At night the insects that pollinate most flowers are dormant and closing the flower keeps the pollen dry and contained. Their closing and opening depends on how hydrated they are; as long as water is being pulled out the cells near the “hinges,” the cells stay turgid and keep the petals open. It’s the property of water to stick together and be pulled up as a chain of molecules that allows this to happen.

Once the sun is gone, that process of water movement greatly dec  reases, causing less water to flow up the stem of the plant to the petals. The petals start drooping because the cells are now deflated without water pressure in them, closing the flower for the night.

 

A Longhorn bee nestles down into a California poppy for a comfortable night.

Fun Poppy Pun

That mysterious closing at sundown and opening at sunrise never ceases to amaze me.

Here is a cute little pun: a lot of flowers together is called a “flower bed” but a single poppy can be a bed for a lonely bug which can find safety and shelter for the night in the closed petals, a true “flower bed”!

In the morning when the sun rises over the hills it can be fun to carefully peek into the awakening flower and see who had a sleep over in this nature motel.

With their lacy smoke-green leaves as a fitting complement to their v[CC1] ibrant gold flowers, California poppies are a stunning and emblematic representation of the natural beauty in our state and Open Space parks.

See poppies and more on a ranger-led spring wildflower hike! For hike dates, times and registration information, go to the calendar at Ranger Programs and Events - Livermore Area Recreation and Park District

 

 

 [CC1]@Crystal Meyer i'm confused by this part but don't know a good way to reword, if you don't mind taking a stab at it.