Poppies? Which ones do I grow to get seeds for baking cakes and such?

Question

How do I know that the ones I am growing are the 'legal' ones. I just want seeds for baking not into anything illegal. What kind of poppy do I grow and will it grow in Zone 9/10?

Answer 1

Poppy seeds come from Papaver somniferum. You can buy seed online or get them in select nurseries that sell them as "breadseed poppy" and such. You just kind of have to know what you are looking for as the botanical name is frequently left off.

I have been trying to find definitively if Papaver somniferum is legal/illegal to grow but can't find a true answer. It's real cloudy. This forum has an interesting thread: http://faultline.org/index.php/site/comments/papaver_somniferum/

Good luck.

Answer 2

I originally planted poppy seeds that I had bought at the grocery store, sold for baking. They are papaver somniferum and are called blue, but the flowers range from white through shades of lavender. I believe they are tolerated rather than legal strictly speaking. I sow seeds from last year each time now - putting the ripe heads in a paper bag to dry and then threshing and winnowing. I don't know about the zone.

Answer 3

The poppy seed in the spice rack is Papaver somniferum and grows a wide and varied looking collection of flowers, from plain white to red pom-poms. The DEA recognizes the low morphine varieties as suitable garden flowers. This is a bit deceiving on there part (the DEA does a lot of it), there are two major groups of P.somniferms, high morphine low heroin used by drug companies to produce pain meds (they use the stems, not the pods) and low morphine high heroin used to produce opium and heroin. So in effect the DEA is promoting the wrong plant. Either type produces poppy seed for baking but the low morphine high heroin type is the most prevalent. If you after a variety that produces lots of seed, try the florist poppy, the seed pods are as big as tennis balls and can be found on eBay. RScott RScott

Answer 4

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Answer 5

Look here
http://forums2.gardenweb.com/forums/load/seed/msg0404330632732.html
and it appears that going to an organic food store might be the best answer.

Answer 6

wouldn't it just be easier to buy them instead ?