Papaver rhoeas: Remembrance Poppy

This species of poppy became known to many as the remembrance poppy, named as such for the blanket of red blooms that sprung up on the Western Front toward the end of WWI.

Poppy seeds need light to germinate, and can lay dormant in the soil for up to 100 years. A combination of trench wartfare and nitrogen from the bombing is believed to be responsible for this massive post-battle poppy bloom in Belgium. Trench warfare stirred up and exposed billions of dormant seeds to light, with nitrogen from bombs acting as a potent fertilizer. The poem, In Flanders Fields by John McCrae, is likely responsible for the wide recognition of this display and its poignance. In many European countries, this species of Papaver is still prevalently used as a token of mourning and remembrance.

With gratitude to the late Anna Laurent for generously sharing her extensive poppy research with me.

Media: watercolor, brush pen, digital