Californian Poppy (Eschscholzia californica) seeds

Californian Poppy is an old and rediscovered medicinal plant and, with its bright blossoms, a beautiful decorative plant. This one here is the yellow-blossoming, well-germinating wild form seeds of which can survive drought in the meagre soils of the southern USA over years. With the first rainfalls, it's floated into the light and germinates.

It's the official flower of the federal state of California and is, by now, all over the world considered as an invasive plant of the settlement as it tolerates a multiplicity of climate conditions. In Germany, it has escaped in many locations as a garden escape.

Californian poppy is also used in naturopathy as a harmless, mood-lifting remedy, and pharmaceutical research also regards it as a promising remedy against insomnia and depression. The indigenous population uses the slightly narcotic plant juice against toothaches. Even if the name doesn't suggest a species relationship, the effect can't be compared with the one of opium poppy as the Californian poppy doesn't contain opiates. Preparation of the dried weed as a tea is suitable for achieving a relaxing and soporific effect.