opium poppy Identification (Papaver somniferum)

Check Papaver somniferum for a tall, smooth, bluish plant with clasping leaves and a large seed capsule.

• Single upright stems are mostly hairless and can reach about 3-5 feet (0.9-1.5 m) tall.
• Leaves are broad, blue-green, and waxy, with wavy to toothed edges; upper leaves wrap around the stem.
• Flowers usually have 4 broad petals and measure about 3-5 inches (7.5-13 cm) across.
• The fruit is a round to egg-shaped capsule, about 1-2 inches (2.5-5 cm) wide, topped by a flat star-like disk.

The clasping leaves and disk-topped capsule are especially useful when flowers are absent.

Papaver somniferum shows clear visual shifts from bluish seedlings to capsule-bearing mature plants.

• Seedling: Seedlings form a small basal rosette of bluish green leaves. Early leaves are simple, then become shallowly lobed and noticeably glaucous, with a waxy cast.
• Young plant: The rosette expands with broader, more deeply toothed leaves. Leaves begin clasping the stem as upright growth starts, unlike the earlier ground-hugging seedling stage.
• Flowering stage: An upright, mostly unbranched stem reaches about 2-4 feet (0.6-1.2 m). Large bowl-shaped flowers sit singly near the top above clasping stem leaves.
• Fruiting stage: After petals drop, the top develops a rounded capsule capped by a flat, radiating disk. The stem remains upright, and the swollen fruit becomes the main feature.

Several ornamental selections of opium poppy are easy to separate by flower form and color.

• 'Hen and Chickens': The seed capsule is surrounded by a ruff of many small secondary capsules, a striking feature not seen on the typical single-capsule form.
• 'Danish Flag': Flowers are bright red with a crisp white cross at the center, unlike the usual solid or softly blended petal colors.
• 'Black Peony': Blooms are fully double and peony-like, with many dark maroon to near-black petals instead of the typical open cup with four petals.
• 'Lauren's Grape': Flowers are single and clear grape-purple to mauve, usually with a pale center, a color range uncommon in typical forms.

In spring, Papaver somniferum appears as a blue-green basal rosette with broad, clasping leaves. By late spring to early summer, tall smooth stems carry large satiny flowers, which are often the easiest seasonal clue. Soon after bloom, the flowers give way to rounded seed capsules that stay upright on the stems. As the plant finishes its annual cycle, foliage and stems dry down and disappear rather than persisting through winter.

A few poppies can be mistaken for Papaver somniferum at a glance.

• Toxic alkaloids: Papaver somniferum contains opium alkaloids, especially in the milky latex and seed capsules. This is a poisoning risk if plant parts are ingested by humans or pets.
• Seeds are the exception: The ripe seeds themselves are generally not the toxic part, but they can be contaminated by latex from the pod. Risk relates to ingestion by humans or pets.