seeds of Papaver somniferum-black swan Opium Poppy

Papaver somniferum-black swan is a cultivar of the species Papaver somniferum of the family Papaveraceae. The plant’s synonyms include Papaver album, Papaver setigerum, and Papaver somniferum laciniatum. Papaver somniferum-black swan is originally from the eastern Mediterranean and has spread over time in many parts of Europe, most notably Britain. Papaver somniferum-black swan can grow to a height of 1m. The plant has both hairy stems and leaves along with a pigment that lingers between green and grey. Any injury inflicted to any part of the plant leads to the oozing out of white latex. Flowers are 30 to 100 mm wide and have a burgundy colour that is close to black. The plant’s sparsely distributed hairiness doesn’t extend to the fruits which are smooth, round and have stigmatic rays. Papaver somniferum-black swan has both beautiful leaves and flowers which make it an ideal ornamental plant. Thus, one can find it cultivated in parks, gardens and other places that could do with an aesthetic upgrade. Papaver somniferum-black swan, along with related cultivars, is grown on a large scale for two main reasons. The first one being its edible seeds which are in high demand. The second reason being to extract opium which has a wide variety of uses for the pharmaceutical industry. While the plants are also sold commercially for ornamental purposes, the earnings earned from the same are much lower. Seeds, being edible, are used in the decoration and flavouring of cakes. The seeds have a nutty and creamy flavour. One can improve the flavour by milling the seeds together with sugar. Doing so will yield a sweet filling that can be useful in multiple ways. One can also count on the seeds as being a reliable ingredient in the making of dry or wet curry. The plant’s growth cycle takes 120 days.