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Romneya (named for T. Romney Robinson, who discovered it about 1845). Papaveraceae. Tall showy herbs or subshrubs used for garden planting.
Stems branching: lvs. petioled, pinnatifid, 2 or 3 pairs of segms. : fls. solitary at the ends of the corymbose branches, large, white and showy, 6 in. across; sepals 3, with a broad membranaceous dorsal wing; petals 6, all alike; stamens very numerous; stigmas numerous, connate at base into a little ring: caps. 7-11-celled, dehiscing to the middle, the valves separating by their margins from the firm persistent placentae.—Two species, Calif, and Mex. Monographed by Fedde in Engler's Pflanzenreich, hft. 40 (IV. 104), 1909.
Romneya grows wild in California from San Diego to Santa Barbara County and also in Mexico, and in the wild state it blooms chiefly in June and July, but in cultivation the period of bloom is increased from May to August. In the region of Los Angeles, it is said to thrive best on dry rocky soil and needs only the water it obtains from the winter rains. Romneya can be transplanted safely if cut to the ground before it is lifted and can be raised from seed if the seed is fresh. Raising from seed under artificial conditions is not very satisfactory, however, as it takes a few years between the germination of the seed and blooming of the seedlings.
Romneya is difficult to transplant, due to the scarcity of fibrous roots; in middle California suckers which are produced in great abundance are transplanted without any loss, provided a good firm ball of earth is kept around the stout thick roots in transit, and if the stems are cut well back, almost to the base. At San Francisco it grows luxuriantly in a heavy adobe soil, producing immense flowers. The name Matilija poppy (pronounced Ma-tilli-ha) is the favorite in California. It comes from the Matilija Canon, Ventura County, where the plant grows in particular abundance. Miss Parsons writes: "Many people have the mistaken idea that it grows only in that region. It is not common by any means; but it is found in scattered localities from Santa Barbara southward into Mexico. It is very abundant near Riverside, and also upon the southern boundary and below in Lower California, where the plants cover large areas. It not only grows in fertile valleys, but seeks the seclusion of remote canons, and nothing more magnificent could be imagined than a steep canon-side covered with the great bushy plants, thickly covered with enormous white flowers." Blossoms remain open for many days. (J. Burtt Davy.)
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'''''Romneya''''' Harv.
'''''Romneya''''' Harv.