Re: Greek Poppies
Hi -
The poppy (at least the common really blood-red poppy of southern Greece) is
P. rhoeas var. pusilla. It's a little more delicate a plant than the
typical "shirley poppies" or "corn poppies" of Europe, and the leaves are a
little more glaucous.
It's kind of bad timing for seeds - I have lots of it in my garden but it's
long since gone to seed. It seems that for honeybees to get into it there
has to be a "critical mass". When I had it in huge clumps along the parking
strips, the bees would find it and go nuts for it!
Incidentally, the sap of this one can get the bees drunk. On May day in
Greece, people typically make flower wreaths. Usually people don't put
poppies in because they fall apart. I was with a friend doing this and
thought, "well, if we tie the base of the petals into the wreath, it won't
matter if they separate. We made the wreaths and hung them on the wall.
Later I wanted to see if the poppies held - I blew on it - and it then moved
by itself. Huh? Looked inside, and each flower had from one to three bees
inside it, completely stoned. (Lucky I didn't get stung...) We put them
out on the balcony and they just lay there - eventually they did come down.
It seems they get frenzied in getting the pollen and accidentally bite the
stamens and get a mouthful of the latex. I also saw bees in my own front
yard, going round and round inside a flower, unable to find their way out -
obviously loopy from poppy sap. :)
If you don't find any seed before next spring, write to me and I'll collect
some seed for you out of my plants.
Incidentally, another very similar plant in color, which also does occur in
the Greek islands, is P. commutatum, or "ladybird poppy". You can get it
form Thompson and Morgan, and it is every bit as beautiful as the other
Greek poppy - very deep red; the differenc being that the flowers are
slightly more petite, and the spots are "commuted" -- that is, instead of
being on the base of the petals, they are in the center.
Bob
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