California Poppy
Eschscholzia californica
Found in roadsides, disturbed areas. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), South Central edition What its natural habitat tells you
Not native to Alabama. How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 82%
- Height
- 1–2 feet
- Spread
- 1–2 feet
- Light
- Full sun
- Soil moisture
- Dry to wet
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At a glance
- Life cycle
- Annual
- Bloom
- April to August
- Fruiting season
- Summer
Not yet recorded · Leaves
Recorded in 3 Alabama counties.
Natural habitats
Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.
Roadsides, fields and disturbed ground
Ground opened by people: roadsides, old fields, pastures, fencerows and lots.
Who uses this plant?
1CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including AL
Genus host records with ranges including AL · Eschscholzia
- Trichoplusia niNi Moth, Cabbage Looper Moth
—BeesSoutheastern regional records
—Specialist beesPollen specialists
2BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim
Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Eschscholzia
- Callipepla californicaCalifornia Quail
- Zonotrichia leucophrysWhite-crowned Sparrow
Direct food only: birds recorded eating this genus across North America. Caterpillars on host plants also feed nesting birds. NC Native Plant Society: butterfly gardening
Plant details
- Family
- Papaveraceae
- Hardiness
- Zones 6a–10b
- Soil pH
- Neutral to alkaline
- Flower color
- Yellow or orange
- Growth rate
- Moderate
- Growth habit
- Single crown
- Foliage color
- Green
- Fruit begins
- Summer
- Fruit ends
- Summer
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Growing sources and scope
- Bloom · “April to August” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs) · Carolinas and Georgia
- Flower color · “Yellow or orange” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs)
- Foliage color · “Green” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Fruit begins · “Summer” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Fruit ends · “Summer” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Growth habit · “Single crown” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Growth rate · “Moderate” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Hardiness · “Zones 6a–10b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Height · “1–2 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs)
- Life cycle · “Annual” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Light · “Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Soil · “Dry; Moist; Wet (documented habitat)” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
- Soil pH · “Neutral to alkaline” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Spread · “1–2 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Conservation status
| Alabama rank | SNA |
|---|---|
| Global rank | G4 |
| AL status | Not verified |
| Federal status | Not verified |
Sources
- Alabama Plant Atlas
- USDA PLANTS
- Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025)
- NatureServe Explorer
- Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
- Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
- Smith, Bachelder, Russell, Morales, Mosher & Seltmann 2024, Bee-Specialization-Modeling v0.6.1 (specialist host table compiled from J. Fowler's pollen specialist bee lists), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
- Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)
- Narango, Tallamy & Shropshire 2020, Few keystone plant genera support the majority of Lepidoptera species, Nature Communications