Opium poppy 'Zeno Morphex' - seeds

This poppy is a fascinating, beautiful ornamental plant and provides the delicious seeds for the classic cake.

50+ seeds per portion.

The 'Zeno Morphex' variety was specially bred as a low-morphine variety for food production. Nevertheless, cultivation in Germany is subject to strict legal requirements!

IMPORTANT LEGAL NOTICE: Cultivation ban & permit requirement! In Germany, every variety of opium poppy (Papaver somniferum) falls under the Narcotics Act (BtMG) – including low-morphine cultivated varieties like 'Zeno Morphex'.

• Strict cultivation ban: It is generally prohibited for private individuals and farmers to sow or plant this poppy without a permit.

• Permit requirement: Even for a single plant in a home ornamental garden, a paid permit must be applied for from the Federal Opium Agency (BfArM) before sowing. Illegal cultivation is a criminal offense!

Growth & Appearance

• Lifespan: Annual.

• Height: Stately 80 to 120 cm.

• Habit: Upright growth with striking blue-green, glaucous and toothed leaves clasping the stem.

• Flower & Fruit: From June to August, huge, paper-like flowers appear (mostly in delicate pink or violet tones with a dark spot in the center). Afterwards, the distinctive, spherical to barrel-shaped poppy capsules form, containing the bluish-black seeds.

Origin The opium poppy is an ancient cultivated plant, originally from the eastern Mediterranean, but has been cultivated throughout Europe since the Neolithic Age.

Ingredients The blue poppy seeds themselves are completely free of opiates and instead extremely rich in valuable vegetable oils, proteins, calcium and B vitamins. The milky plant sap of the wild form contains highly effective alkaloids (morphine, codeine). However, the 'Zeno Morphex' variety has been specially bred so that its content of these substances is negligible.

Use

• In the kitchen: The dried, ripe seeds are the classic "blue poppy" for baking cakes, rolls or desserts.

• Floristry: The dried poppy capsules are an extremely popular element for autumn arrangements and dried bouquets.

Historical Opium poppy is one of humanity's oldest medicinal and cultivated plants. It was used over 6,000 years ago – both as a valuable, nutritious food (oil and seeds) and for pain relief.

Curious facts The botanical epithet somniferum translates to "sleep-bringing". 'Zeno Morphex' is a masterpiece of modern breeding: it allows farmers in Europe to once again grow regional baking poppy without the fields being misused for illegal drug production.

Location, Care & other important things

• Location: Full sun.

• Soil: Deep, well-drained and moderately nutrient-rich. Does not tolerate waterlogging at all.

• Care & Sowing (after successful authorization!): Poppy forms a deep taproot and hates being transplanted. It should be sown directly outdoors in spring (March/April).