Eschscholzia

Taxobox
name = "Eschscholzia"


image_caption = California Poppy ("Eschscholzia californica")
regnum = Plantae
divisio = Magnoliophyta
classis = Magnoliopsida
ordo = Ranunculales
familia = Papaveraceae
genus = "Eschscholzia"
genus_authority = Cham.
subdivision_ranks = Species
subdivision = See text.

Eschscholzia is a genus of 12 flowering plants in the Papaveraceae (poppy) family. The genus was named after the Baltic German botanist Johann Friedrich von Eschscholtz (1793-1831).

Many of the plants in this genus are annuals or perennials with deeply cut glabrous or glaucous leaves. These are mostly basal, but a few grow on the stem.

They feature showy four-petaled yellow or orange terminal flowers, growing solitary or in many-flowered cymes. They are funnel-shaped. The two fused sepals fall off as the flower bud opens. The petals are wedge-shaped. There are 12 to numerous stamens.

They develop a cylindrical, dehiscent fruit, producing many tiny seeds.

Two species are widely cultivated. These flowers have the habit of closing in cloudy weather.

The taproot gives off a colorless or orange milky juice. These plants are mildly toxic.

The best-known is the California Poppy ("Eschscholzia californica"), the state flower of California; another common in cultivation is "E. lobbii", which is often sold as "Eschscholzia caespitosa", even though the two species are quite different.

Species

*"Eschscholzia caespitosa"—Tufted Poppy, Foothill Poppy, Collarless California Poppy
*"Eschscholzia californica"—California Poppy
*"Eschscholzia elegans"
*"Eschscholzia glyptosperma"
*"Eschscholzia hypecoides"
*"Eschscholzia lemmonii"
*"Eschscholzia lobbii"—Frying pans
*"Eschscholzia minutiflora"
*"Eschscholzia palmeri"
*"Eschscholzia parishii"
*"Eschscholzia ramosa"
*"Eschscholzia rhombipetala"

They prosper in warm, dry climates, but withstand some frost. They grow in poor soils with good water drainage.

External links

* [http://www.csupomona.edu/~jcclark/poppy California poppies and their relatives]