Iceland poppy, Papaver nudicaule

Icelandic poppy and kiwi fruit! Kiwi fruit were Chinese gooseberries before the market decided they would sell better as kiwis. They didn't grow with the kiwis in New Zealand. I don't know what these poppies were called before they were marketed as Icelandic. They didn't grow in Iceland. They did grow in northern climates around the world. With us, they were native to eastern Alaska and the Yukon. Those original plants had yellow or white flowers. Now these poppies are popular in horticulture, and also come in shades of orange or red. Those cultivars can occasionally be seen in open ground or on roadsides. Often they are in seed packets labelled as wildflowers that get scattered by the well intentioned. They don't seem to persist very long. Opinions are divided on whether they should count among our wild blooms. They have been reported from CO, MD, UT, and BC, Beal Garden MSU, 6/4/13. Poppy family, Papaveraceae.