Arizona Wild Flowers
Wildflower Pictures And Photos

California Or Mexican Gold Poppy, Eschscholzia california or mexicana

This Is The California Poppy, Eschscholzia californica: Note It Is Solid Gold.

This Is The Mexican Gold Poppy Eschscholzia mexicana: Note It Is More Gold In The Center.

Mexican Gold Poppy, Eschscholzia mexicana	Mexican Gold Poppy, Eschscholzia mexicana
Desert Gold Poppy	Mexican Gold Poppy, Eschscholzia mexicana

Click Here To See Rare White California Poppy Mutant

California Or Mexican Gold Poppy Eschscholzia mexicana, Poppy Family ( Papaveraceae ), California Or Mexican Gold Poppy. Also called: Desert Gold Poppy or Amapola del Campo. Annual. In years with good fall and winter rains, California Or Mexican Gold Poppies may produce carpets of gold in the spring—a dazzling sight for visitors and residents alike. There are three species of Eschscholzia in Arizona. Note the difference in appearance of the plants in my photos. Yes, they are all considered California Poppies Or Mexican Gold Poppies, by us common folks! Just take your pick! However. with that being said, plant experts are now considering that the golden-orange-flowered California Poppies, which are native to southern Arizona, are to be no longer considered a separate species, the Mexican Gold Poppy (E. mexicana). But that they are now to be simply considered a smaller, yellower-flowered subspecies of the larger, orange-flowered California Poppy. Height: Up To About 16 Inches Tall. Flowers: Orange color. Cup-shaped flowers, with 4 petals up to 1.5" in diameter. Followed by a long slender seed capsule. Blooming Time: Mid March - May. Leaves: Finely divided blue - green, (fern-like) to 2.5" long. Divided into narrow segments, on long stalks at the stem joints. Found: Native in Arizona and California . Elevation: 0 - 5000 Feet. Habitat: Mexican Gold Poppy's habitat is the desert environs, where it occupies open, sandy soils to rocky flats, bajadas, roadsides, and playas. Commonly seen at disturbed, bare greound, such as new roadsides. Miscellaneous: Flowering Photos Taken April 29, 2003. Near Lake Pleasant.