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| ## white prickly poppy {#white-prickly-poppy .Title-Header}           |
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| *Argemone albiflora* Hornem. ssp. texana G.B. Ownbey                  |
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| Plant Symbol = ARALT                                                  |
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Contributed by: USDA NRCS Kika de la Garza Plant Materials Center

**Alternate Names**![](media/image2.wmf){width="2.9256944444444444in"
height="2.2493055555555554in"}

bluestem pricklypoppy

##### Uses {#uses .Header-3}

The seeds of the white prickly poppy are said to be an excellent source
of food for quail and other birds because of their high oil content.
Additionally, the oil from the white prickly poppy was used as an
alternative fine lubricant during WW II. Dr. Malcolm Gerngross, a
researcher at Texas A&M College Station, found the oil content of white
prickly poppy seed to be 25.8%, an amount comparable to that found in
soybeans.

The white prickly poppy can be used as an ornamental. Its showy flowers
make it an interesting addition to a native garden. It can also be used
as a cut flower, and will last longer if the cut stem is seared over an
open flame immediately after cutting.

##### Status {#status .Header-3}

Please consult the PLANTS Web site and your State Department of Natural
Resources for this plant's current status (e.g. threatened or endangered
species, state noxious status, and wetland indicator values).

##### Description {#description .Header-3}

White prickly poppy (*Argemone albiflora* spp. texana) is an erect,
prickly, deep-rooted, annual or biennial that contains bright yellow
latex. A member of the poppy (papaveraceae) family, it has a showy white
flower, with numerous yellow or reddish stamens. The sepals of the white
prickly poppy are topped with sharp prickles, and the sepals fall off as
the flower expands.

The leaves also are spiny, which keeps cattle from eating it, since this
plant is somewhat poisonous. One researcher noted that the leaves of the
white prickly poppy are so prickly that cattle will not even eat it
during severe drought periods.

A related species, rose or spiny prickly poppy (*Argemone sanguinea*),
has white, lavender, or purple flowers. It can be found in the southern
half of Texas, from the coast, to the far western border of the state.
White prickly poppy has ascending prickles on its sepals, as opposed to
the perpendicular prickles on the sepals of the rose prickly poppy.

##### Adaptation {#adaptation .Header-3}

White prickly poppy can be found from northern Arkansas and southern
Missouri to Texas. In Texas, it can be found in all regions except the
panhandle and far western portions of the state. White prickly poppy
tends to grow best in sandy or gravelly soils, although it has been
grown successfully in clayey soils at the Kika de la Garza Plant
Materials Center. It is often found in disturbed areas, along fence rows
and railroad tracks, on hills and slope and in overgrazed pastures and
old fields. White prickly poppies tend to grow in colonies.

For a current distribution map, please consult the Plant Profile page
for this species on the PLANTS Website.

##### Establishment {#establishment .Header-3}

White prickly poppy is best grown from seed. The fairly large seeds make
it a good candidate for direct seeding methods. White prickly poppy has
been successfully seeded at the Plant Materials Center. It can be
drilled or broadcast in rows, strips, or small patches to create food
plots for birds. Broadcast at 3 lbs. of pure live seed per acre, or
drill at 1 lb. of pure live seed per acre. There are approximately
157,600 seeds per pound. Seeds should be sown in the late fall.

When germination was tested on two occasions at the Plant Materials
Center, seed viability tended to vary widely. In 1994, germination
percentages ranging from 0 to 76 percent were found for 43 different
accessions of white prickly poppy. Average germination for this study
was 12 percent. Temperatures for the 1994 germination tests were10º C
for 12 hours of darkness and 25º C for 12 hours of light.

A 1999 study using a twelve accession composite seed source yielded
germination ranging from 10 to 22 percent, with an average germination
of 17 percent. Temperatures for this study were 10º C for 12 hours of
darkness 25º C for 12 hours of light.

##### Management {#management .Header-3}

Once white prickly poppy has been established, the plot should be disked
annually to control competition and to replant seeds. For seed
production purposes, seed can be harvested with a combine when the tip
of the seed capsule begins to turn brown. If you wait too long to
harvest, seed shatter will occur. Under dryland conditions at the Plant
Materials Center, white prickly poppy produces approximately 130 lbs of
seed per acre.

##### Prepared By & Species Coordinators:  {#prepared-by-species-coordinators .Header-3}

John Lloyd-Reilley, Manager

*Elizabeth Kadin*, Research Assistant

Kika de la Garza Plant Materials Center

Kingsville, Texas

##### 

##### Edited: 05Feb2002 JLK; 31may06jsp {#edited-05feb2002-jlk-31may06jsp .Header-4}

For more information about this and other plants, please contact your
local NRCS field office or Conservation District, and visit the PLANTS
Web site\<[http://plants.usda.gov](http://plants.usda.gov/)\> or the
Plant Materials Program Web site
\<[http://Plant-Materials.nrcs.usda.gov](http://Plant-Materials.nrcs.usda.gov/)\>

*The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in
all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national
origin, sex, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual
orientation, and marital or family status. (Not all prohibited bases
apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require
alternative means for communication of program information (Braille,
large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA\'s [TARGET
Center](http://www.usda.gov/oo/target.htm) at 202-720-2600 (voice and
TDD).*

*To file a complaint of discrimination write USDA, Director, Office of
Civil Rights, Room 326-W, Whitten Building, 14th and Independence
Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20250-9410 or call 202-720-5964 (voice or
TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.*

*Read about [Civil Rights at the Natural Resources Convervation
Service](http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/about/civilrights/).*