Eschscholzia parishii – “Parish’s Gold Poppy”

Also Known As: Parish Poppy
Family: Poppy (Papaveraceae)
Bloom Period: Mar-Apr
Form: Annual herb
Habitat: Sandy washes and gravelly flats
Leaves: Pinnately-divided, leaflets linear; mostly basal
Translation: “Eschscholzia” is named for Dr. Johann Friedrich Gustav von Eschscholtz (1753-1831), a Balkan surgeon, entomologist and botanist who visited California with the Russian expeditions in the early 1800’s; “parishii” is named after W. F. and S. B. Parish, who were “the pioneer botanical collectors of southern California” from the late 1800’s to the 1920’s.
Notes: A close relative of California Poppy (Eschscholzia californica), the state flower of California, but can have stem leaves and multiple flowers per stem; E. parishii always has bare stems and only one flower per stem.
Native American Uses: The Kawaiisu used the roots to treat venereal disease such as gonorrhea and syphilis both topically and internally. California Poppy was used by various Native American tribes for a number of different purposes – as a sedative, a toothache remedy, and to dry up breast milk, among others – and Parish’s Gold Poppy might very well been applied in many of the same ways.