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Opium poppies

Oh, goody, every plants group has to have the periodical Opium poppy
discussion!  :) :)

Here in the U.S., it is legal to have seeds.  After all, it's a culinary
item.  It's officially illegal to have any other part of the plant.  Of
course, flower shops routinely sell the dried seedheads as ornamentals for
arrangements.  And just about every garden in Seattle has opium poppy.

It seems that here at least, the lack of enforcement is due to a
combination of ignorance on just what the plant looks like (how to tell it
from P. orientale or other poppies), and apathy (they really have better
things to do than go around arresting every other gardener).  Now if they
think you are producing it, or doing other drug-related crimes and you
happen to have a yard full of opium poppies, then you are asking for
trouble.  Incidentlly, it really doesn't matter whether or not you are
slitting hte pods; "pro's" usually extract the drug from the whole dried
plant these days.  

I guess everyone has to decide what they are willing to do.  Here it's not
a big deal.  I don't grow them in the front yard though.

bob


On Thu, 5 Feb 1998, Michael Bailes wrote:

> At 4:49 AM +1100 4-2-98, Susannah Meininger wrote:
> >Katherine Pyle wrote:
> >>inspection station at the San Francisco airport ...
> >>The inspector and I had quite a nice chat. ... He also alerted me to a few
> >>closely related plants that WOULD be a problem because they can turn into
> >>such horrible weeds, and to some other seeds that would be confiscated for
> >>sure (like opium poppy and mango).
> >
> >Huh..what?  I live in the US, and i've ordered opium poppy seeds from
> >Chiltern's just fine.  Harpers Magazine had a cover story on the whole
> >silly subject of poppy seeds last summer, BTW.
> I would love to see the article.
> We had a vist from the drug squad when we did the same.
> I saw sutton's peony poppies at their trial garden and fell in love.
> Alas, a love not to be consumated.
> "O what fools these 'pectors be"
> 
> 
> Michael Bailes,  The Fragrant Garden, Portsmouth Road, Erina. N.S.W. 2250
> Australia. (OZ) Int fax 61 243 651979  Phone 61 243 677322
>  EMAIL: frgntgar@ozemail.com.au  Web page at:
> http://www.ozemail.com.au/~frgntgar/
> 1998 Chilli Festival 8/9 March.
> http://www.ozemail.com.au/~frgntgar/chili/festival1998.html
> Free newsletter at
> http://www.ozemail.com.au/~frgntgar/newsletters/index.html
> 
> 
>
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