california native flora

Eschscholzia Californica – California Poppy

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The California Poppy (Eschscholzia Californica) is the Official State Flower of California. This easy-to-grow native perennial is a late spring/summer bloomer and is a common sight in wildflower areas, one of the best known of which is the Antelope Valley Poppy Reserve just outside Lancaster.

I have these dotted around various parts of the garden, most of my plants are medium to large shrubs and it’ll be nice to see a splash of color closer to the ground. It is a great wildflower to have in a drought tolerant garden – they love full sun and should survive on rainfall alone (although a little supplemental refreshment now and again won’t hurt). The plants grow quickly to about 1′ tall and the stems produce an individual orange/golden colored bloom. After flowering they’ll normally produce a healthy crop of seeds. Eschscholzia Californica has a propensity to reseed readily so don’t be surprised to see new plants popping up in unexpected places.

The specimens in this image are about 3 months old, hopefully the first blooms are not far away.