Eschscholzia californica, commonly known as the California poppy, is a fast-growing, cool-season annual or short-lived perennial wildflower native to the western United States, prized for its silky, cup-shaped blooms and finely divided, blue-green foliage. Plants typically form low, mounding clumps 6 to 12 inches tall and spread 6 to 18 inches wide, with slender, branching stems rising above a basal rosette of feathery leaves that are usually 2 to 6 inches long. From early spring through summer—and often into fall in mild climates—the flowers appear singly atop wiry stalks, each bloom measuring about 2 to 3 inches across, most commonly in vivid shades of golden orange, though cultivated varieties range from cream and yellow to red, pink, and bi-colored forms. After flowering, narrow seed capsules develop, reaching 2 to 3 inches long, which split explosively when dry to disperse seeds several feet away. California poppy thrives in full sun and well-drained, sandy or gravelly soils, tolerates drought exceptionally well once established, and performs best where summer rainfall is light. It is frequently used in wildflower meadows, borders, rock gardens, and roadside plantings, where its modest size, long bloom period, and ability to naturalize make it an iconic and resilient ornamental and ecological plant.