Botanical Name :

Papaver nudicaule

Common Name :

Iceland Poppy

Product Use :

Cut Flower

Pronunciation :

Pa-PAH-ver new-di-CAW-lee

Family Roots :

Member of the Papaveraceae (poppy family). 

Native to the Arctic region of North America, Eurasia. Hence, the common name! 

Some not so common relatives include Dendromecon, Meconopsis and Romneya.

Personality :

Has four papery petals around a center composed of many stamens, solitary at stem ends. 

Stems are leafless, hairy, wiry, up to 24 inches long. 

Plant is a herbaceous perennial, classed as a dicotyledon. 

Flowers are not fragrant.

Availability :

Summer.

Flower Color :

White, pink, yellow, coral, orange, red. Some have one color on the inside of the petals and a different color on the outside.

Decorative Life :

5-7 days.

Ethylene Sensitivity :

Low

Ethylene Comments :

Did not respond to ethylene levels normally encountered in flower marketing channels.

Post Harvest
Care Opportunities :

Reports published in 1936 and 1938 state that flower life benefits from the cut stem ends being placed in boiling water for a few seconds after recutting at wholesale or retail levels. Other reports in 1950 and 1958 state that a 30 second dip of the cut stem ends in boiling water is essential. No recent report was found that addresses this subject. 

Finally, a 1917 report states that cut stem ends should be charred until they are crisp (not merely singed) using a candle flame or something similar.

Storage Specifics :

36-41 F, in water for short time. Store upright to prevent geotropism (stem bending). Storage at 34F for one week did not reduce vaselife.

Preharvest &
Harvest Factors:

Should be harvested when the buds have split such that the color can be seen underneath.

Tidbits :

Poppies thrive in freshly turned soil, and grew by the millions in France during World War I. The ground was churned in battle, and as a consequence the Poppy has long been associated with war. The Opium Poppy has been used medicinally since ancient times, and its name comes from Latin "somnus" for sleep. 

The specific epithet name "nudicaule" means naked stem, no leaves on stem. 

Papaver is an old Latin name for poppy and is from "pappa" (food or milk), an allusion to the milky latex. 

With many members of this genus, flowers only open after the calyx splits releasing the petals.

See More Hoogasian Flowers A to Z at:
http://www.hoogasian.com/FlowersAtoZ.html