City swamped by visitors in 2019 wild poppies "super bloom" warns outsiders steer clear this time

Poppies will make them sleep...

Got to ask, these can't be the same genus and species of "smack" poppies of Afghanistan?

This is so Californian, they hype up protecting the environment, and then proceed to wreck the environment, going to see the natural phenomena in the environment

U.S.
City swamped by visitors after 2019 wild poppies "super bloom" warns outsiders to steer clear this time
www.cbsnews.com...

A small California city that was overrun by visitors four years ago when heavy winter rains produced a "super bloom" of wild poppies has a message for the public after this year's deluge: Do not come. You could be arrested.


The poppies are beginning to bloom but so far on a small scale - and the canyon where they grow and parking areas are now completely off-limits, Lake Elsinore Mayor Natasha Johnson told a press conference where she recounted the chaos of 2019.

"The flowers were beautiful; the scene was a nightmare," Johnson said.

[...]

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Not the same species. Opium poppy is papaver somniferum and California has it's own poppy, escholtzia californicum, which are bright orange and in the larger Papaver/poppy family. Opium is usually white though the cultivated varieties can be pink, red, purple.

Editing to add, the california ones are not known to have opiates. At least not any usable amount. Some plants, even lettuce if I remember right, has trace amounts of opiates.

If this is to be a tourist 'thing' then the authorities need to spend money to put in place proper visiting resources, parking (RV parking resources? too much to ask?), benches to rest, water fountain and signs warning of type of terrain and walking distances. Put controls in place.

I'm not sure why the authorities there and businesses don't cash in on this?

The poppies are quite beautiful but the terrain looks like a tough go.

www.msn.com...

originally posted by: igloo
Not the same species. Opium poppy is papaver somniferum and California has it's own poppy, escholtzia californicum, which are bright orange and in the larger Papaver/poppy family. Opium is usually white though the cultivated varieties can be pink, red, purple.

Editing to add, the california ones are not known to have opiates. At least not any usable amount. Some plants, even lettuce if I remember right, has trace amounts of opiates.

Interesting

en.wikipedia.org...

Papaver californicum is an annual herb that grows a hairy to hairless stem which may exceed half a meter in height.

The flower atop the mostly naked stem usually has four petals one or two centimeters long that are orange in color with green bases. Petals of the similar wind poppy (Stylomecon heterophylla) have purple bases.[2]

The flowers last only a few days at most. The seeds, once scattered, can lie dormant for years; smoke acts as a trigger for them to germinate.[3]

Californidine is the alkaloid that's of interest.

Californidine is an alkaloid with the molecular formula C20H20NO4+. It has been isolated from extracts of the California poppy (Eschscholzia californica),[1][2] from which it gets its name, and from other plants of the genus Eschscholzia.

Pharmaceutical use

Because of the sedative, anxiolytic, and analgesic effects, the herb California Poppy (Amapola de California, Eschscholzia californica, Pavot d'Amérique, Pavot d'Or, Pavot de Californie, Poppy California, Yellow Poppy) is currently sold in pharmacies in many countries.[5]

Horticulturalist Alys Fowler wrote in 2022 that the California poppy "makes the most wonderful tea. You can use aerial parts: flowers, stems, leaves, fresh or dried. It is a gentle tea that can reduce anxiety and aid sleep. It contains none of the alkaloids associated with opium poppies.""[6]

No opium just an extremely mild sedative effect. I think people were just going there to view the "super bloom". I know it's all over the place in California. The only reason to travel there would be to see a whole field in bloom.

originally posted by: Blaine91555
Californidine is the alkaloid that's of interest.

Californidine is an alkaloid with the molecular formula C20H20NO4+. It has been isolated from extracts of the California poppy (Eschscholzia californica),[1][2] from which it gets its name, and from other plants of the genus Eschscholzia.

Pharmaceutical use

Because of the sedative, anxiolytic, and analgesic effects, the herb California Poppy (Amapola de California, Eschscholzia californica, Pavot d'Amérique, Pavot d'Or, Pavot de Californie, Poppy California, Yellow Poppy) is currently sold in pharmacies in many countries.[5]

Horticulturalist Alys Fowler wrote in 2022 that the California poppy "makes the most wonderful tea. You can use aerial parts: flowers, stems, leaves, fresh or dried. It is a gentle tea that can reduce anxiety and aid sleep. It contains none of the alkaloids associated with opium poppies.""[6]

No opium just an extremely mild sedative effect. I think people were just going there to view the "super bloom". I know it's all over the place in California. The only reason to travel there would be to see a whole field in bloom.

Perhaps I worded this poorly wasn't insinuating that there were a bunch of Californian hop heads heading into to cultivate the blooms.

But you do hear of people failing drug tests from poppy seed bagels, I assume those aren't heroin poppies either.

a reply to: putnam6

Poppy seeds for cooking are from the plant that produces Opiates. They do contain tiny amounts of opium I understand.

I know you can't legally grow them in the US but you can buy the seeds for cooking.