i’m a california kid,
The sun was born under the sun and the bright sky.
Opening the heart is Azhari,
Everyone who loves will find a place here.
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| Poppy field in California. |
California kids know the poppy as well as the buttercup. They saw it rush after the first fall rains. It grows anywhere, along the railway track, in grassy meadows, on top of a sunny hill. It lights up so much of our land that we have made it the flower of our state.
Is the poppy the same corolla as the buttercup? You see at once that it didn’t happen. It has only four petals. They are not polished inside like the petals of a buttercup. See how silky they are. This satin deflects light into the bug’s eye the way buttercup varnish does.
When Mrs. Bug sees this beautiful field of colour, she rushes over to it. Do you find honey dishes like Mrs. Buttercup’s sets? No you did not. Mrs. Poppy does not make honey for her visitors. They make so much pollen that they can eat whatever they want. Just dip your nose into the poppy center. Ha! Ha!
Little child, ”You dusty fellow,
You have anointed your nose with gold.”
As the visiting insect eats the pollen, it sprinkles some dust on it. Bear this on her when she crawls to the next poppy. There, the stigmas capture pollen grains and send them to the ovules. Poppy pollen makes the ovules of the poppy into the poppy seed, just as the pollen of the ranunculus makes the ovules of the ranunculus into the seeds of the buttercup.
Learn how the poppy cup differs from the buttercup cup. Isn’t a cute little night cap? Sit near a bed of poppies on a warm, bright morning. Keep your eyes on green cabbage sprouts. The green cap slowly begins to rise, and orange appears inside. It rises higher and higher. Suddenly zap, launch into the air! Then the four poppy petals open themselves into the pretty flower.
After throwing the cup, the Corolla does its job. Every night the petals wrap tightly around the stamens and pistils. Or if the weather is cloudy, misty, or rainy, the petals curl up tightly to keep the pistils and stamens safe from harm.
Watch how the poppy petals sit on a small platform. If you pull out a petal, what do you come up with? If you pull out all four petals, what is still on top of the platform? Can you tell us, kids, what goes with the petals?
stamens?
Yes, this is correct. And what remains on the platform?
pistil?
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| California poppy parts. |
Yes, this is correct. See how the seed case is growing through this platform. Look at the little ribs along its sides. Watch him when he grows up. Watch how it curls open and scatters its seeds. If a strong wind blows when the seed packet is opened, the small black seeds are carried away.
Note Mrs. Bobby’s papers. Are they the same shape as buttercup leaves? Do they come out of the trunk the same way? Are they the same shade of green? Which do you think is more beautiful, a bunch of buttercup leaves or a bunch of poppy leaves?
Does poppy root die when leaves fade? See for yourself.
You can use poppy seeds in your puppet parties. They are good to eat. You know we buy poppy seed bread and poppy seed muffins from bakeries.
If you were born a longtime California Native, your mother would boil some poppy leaves for the greens for you. It may taste bitter to you today, when you are used to spinach, but it tasted just as good to the original children two hundred years ago.
If you were born a Californian Spanish boy or girl, your mother would fry some poppy leaves in olive oil. Then, she would rub that grease all over your head. Make hair long and shiny. All Spanish Californians had beautiful hair.
Some people today use poppy juice to treat headaches or to put them to sleep. I will tell you a secret. Cross your heart and promise not to tell. No, on second thought, I think it would be best to tell everyone you meet.
Just spend some time each day outside in the sunlight to study the habits of poppies. Then you can tap your fingers on any old headache, and you’ll fall asleep to the sound as a record. Sweet dream!
Take a children’s safari to see poppies!
Learn how to make poppy flower dolls here.