Bush Poppy is 3 to 10 feet tall and is the only shrub in the in the San Gabriel Mountains. In spring, it has many large, bright yellow flowers that are framed very attractively by the blueish-green .
The rather leathery, , leaves are 1 to 4 inches long, yellow-green to gray-green above, and paler below. These leaves are generally held nearly straight up, effectively reducing direct exposure to the hot sun. The bright yellow flowers are about 2 1/2 inches across and develop at the ends of branching stems. There are only 2 broad to cover the bud, and these drop off when the flowers open, usually from February to April. The 4 satiny, bright yellow are a little over 1 inch long. The many form a yellow sphere in the center, with the broad, split of the just poking through the center. The narrow, curved are 2 to 4 inches long. They split open explosively from the base, dispersing the 1/16-inch-long seeds with a pop. The seeds are then further dispersed by ants, which are attracted to a fatty appendage attached to each seed. The ants carry the seeds to their nests, eat the appendages, and discard the seeds. Bush Poppy grows below 6,000 feet on dry slopes and in washes. This is found along the and in the from to Shasta County, as well as the foothills of the and the . Bush Poppy is the only of Dendromecon in the San Gabriel Mountains. Channel Island Tree Poppy (D. harfordii) is a closely related species that is found on the Channel Islands and is a great choice for native plant gardens. This Bush Poppy is the mainland cousin of the Island Bush Poppy, which is more often used in gardens due to its broader leaves and year-round flowering. Our Bush Poppy is somewhat hardier, and it flowers once a year in spring with a beautiful show of large yellow flowers.
Full sun or light shade.
No summer water.
Requires well-drained soil.
The common name, Poppy, may come from the sound the fruit makes when it pops open to disperse the seeds.