The poppy flower is well known historical flower. The popularity of this plant is not just for its beauty and pretty flowers, but also it is used in highly addictive drug production which called opium.

It also aids to manufacture medications like codeine and morphine, which are the most important medicines in the world. Its use as a painkiller is perhaps the largest reason poppy is so important and sought after. It has become one of the most popular flowers in history due to the items, produced from the poppy plant.

Poppy is a herbaceous plant that is often cultivated for its bright colors, botanically speaking. There are several species, all of which are in the Papaveroideae subfamily of the Papaveraceae family of poppies.

People enjoy this exquisite and captivating poppy flower so much for its distinctive look and the way it surprises you. In appearance, the stems are very long, thin and even hairy. Each stem holds a bloom of poppy flower that explodes open and the surprise doesn't know exactly what color you're going to get.

These are flowers, available seasonally in winter/spring, that carry a deep and personal meaning for some. So let's learn more about poppies, their importance, shape, color selection, and how they can be used for weddings as well.

Poppy Flower Meaning:

With Remembrance Day, November 11th, most people associate poppies, particularly red poppies. Red poppies are a sign of the memory of the soldiers who died in the battle. Soldiers fought in the fields of Flanders in Belgium during the First World War. The fields of Flanders were dominated by poppies, which were considered in many areas to be a weed growing in Europe.

Poppies symbolize sleep and death as well. Sleep because a sedative is morphine extracted from the herb, and death due to the red color that is seen to signify blood. The bright red of the poppy in the folklore of soldiers came from the blood of their comrades soaking the ground.

·       Poppy Petals

So special are the petals of poppies. Each bloom shows four to six petals, each with several lines, wrinkles and ruffled edges that look like crumpled paper. This will be due to the close holding of it in the bud until bursting open. Like paper flowers, they look so fragile. It is also very striking and eye-catching in the middle circle of stamens. Many floral designs are a perfect focal point.

·       Poppy Flower Colors

The variety of colors in poppies includes red, plus several hues of oranges and yellows bright tones, lighter shades of cream, light pink and peach, as described earlier.

How beautiful do they all look clustered together? You can thought of them as a perfect gift for a happy birthday or cheering someone up, and when you look at poppies you can't help but smile.

·       Poppies for Weddings

Poppies have a romance about them because of their ruffled, fluffy petals. Obviously, they lend themselves to being the role in a beautiful bouquet of wedding blooms. Blooms of poppies can also fit well in garden poses. They have a wild and carefree stem that curves and bends so are ideal for that 'just picked' look. People love the mixture of lavender, roses, astilbe, lisianthus and dusty miller, pale shades of poppy, very sweet indeed. Poppies make an excellent buttonhole, but be aware that their petals are fragile and can be crushed after saying 'I do' with the first congratulatory embrace. But you can use their sola wood mimics to keep them fresh and blooming for the rest of your life.

Some historical facts about Poppies

Here is some historical information by woodflowers.com that will be very interesting for you:

• The opium war is possibly the most important event caused by a plant in human history. The British started to smuggle opium into China for a massive profit in the early 1800s, following a trade dispute between Great Britain and China. There were over 10 million Chinese opium users nearly 40 years later. Ultimately, China retaliated against the British, and an all-out naval war followed.
• A second war, which began in 1856, eventually took place. An English vessel was seized by a Chinese merchant this time, which spurred another dispute. To fight against China, France also entered and teamed up with the British. All of this was because some people wanted to trade a plant, while others wanted it to be gone!
• Another war-related history lesson on the poppy flower is here. Combat occurred in a position called Flanders in France during World War 1. After the battle ended and the bodies of hundreds of soldiers were held in shallow graves, red poppies started to bloom in mass quantities in the freshly upturned soil. This inspired one of the most popular poems of the period, entitled "In Flanders Field." It was written by a Canadian soldier and poet in the spring of 1915 and it soon became World War 1's most recited poem. Canada, Europe, and the United States radiated in the poem. Only a few years later, as a token of homage to those who lost their lives during the war, a woman from the US vowed to still wear a red poppy flower. Every year, still now, some people wear a red poppy flower to remember fallen soldiers.
• A group of individuals known as the Hmong live in northern Vietnam. They acknowledged that their soil and altitude were suitable for growing a precious cash crop: poppy flowers. For a few generations, the Hmong thrived and were able to build a royal palace using the money they gained from the opium trade made from their poppies. One of the reasons why the Hmong were able to combat France's colonization was the poppy flower's economic strength.
• Morphine was first extracted out of opium resin in 1803. At first, because of its ability to numb any pain, no matter how extreme, it was hailed as a wonder drug. Next was codeine, another pain reliever that was extremely powerful. Then, in 1874, heroin from the poppy plant was developed by the German pharmaceutical company Bayer. Believe it or not, heroin was a common drug for a long time before its addictive effects were brought to light. Of course, now it is classified as one of the world's most dangerous medicines. Today, we also use medications that come from the plant and administer them.
• Several medical advances would not have been possible without the poppy flower. This is the very same flower that went along the Silk Road, started wars, and now provides people with solace in times of remembrance. Without a doubt, Poppy is one of history's most common blossoms.