POPPY FAMILY. Papaveraceae 



POPPY FAMILY. Papaveraceae. 



A rather large family, widely distributed, most abun- 

 dant in the north temperate zone; herbs, rarely shrubs, 

 with milky, mostly yellow juice and narcotic or acrid 

 properties; the leaves mostly alternate, without stipules; 

 the parts of the flower usually all separate and distinct, 

 borne on a top -shaped receptacle. There are usually two 

 sepals, which fall off when the blossom opens, and usually 

 four petals, overlapping and crumpled in the bud; the 

 stamens are usually numerous and conspicuous, with 

 thread-like filaments; the superior ovary becomes a many- 

 seeded capsule. 



There are only two kinds of Romneya, much alike, 

 smooth, stout, perennial herbs, several feet high, with 

 colorless sap, the leaves alternate and more or less divided; 

 three sepals, each with a broad wing on the back; six, large, 

 white petals; many stamens; the ovary covered with 

 bristles. These plants are nowhere common, but are 

 found from Santa Barbara south, and in lower California 

 sometimes grow in great profusion. They are extensively 

 cultivated and much admired abroad. 



This is often considered the handsomest 



Matilija Poppy, flower {n the West and it wQuld be hafd 

 Oiant .Poppy 



Romntya " to ^ n( ^ anything more beautiful and 



trichocalyx striking than its magnificent blossoms. 



White The plant has somewhat the effect of a 



Peony-bush, sometimes, in cultivation, as 

 California J 



much as five feet high, with many smooth 



stems and handsome, smooth, light-green foliage, the 

 leaves cut and lobed, those near the top with a few prickles. 

 The splendid flowers are enormous, from five to nine 

 inches across, with diaphanous, white petals, crinkled like 

 crepe tissue-paper, and bright golden centers, composed of 

 hundreds of yellow stamens surrounding a greenish-white 

 pistil. The blossoms remain open for several days. The 

 hard, round buds are covered with short, brown hairs. 

 This is the true Matilija Poppy, (pronounced Matfliha,) 

 as it is the kind that grows in the canyon of that name, 

 but the tremendous floods of 1914 drowned most of these 

 beautiful plants in that locality. R. Cbulteri is similar, 

 but the buds are smooth and the stems more robust. 

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