The Mexican Poppy Argemone mexicana is a species of poppy originally from Mexico
but now widely naturalized around the world including Saudi Arabia. It is an extremely
hardy pioneer plant that is tolerant of drought. It grows in sandy, well-drained
soil preferring dry or moist soil and can tolerate drought but not shade. They grow
up to 150 cm tall with its stem branched and usually extremely prickly. It exudes
a yellow juice when cut and has showy yellow flowers. The leaves are thistle-like and
alternate, without leaf stalks, toothed and the margins are spiny. The grey-white veins stand out
against the bluish-green upper leaf surface. The stem is oblong in
cross-section.
The flowers are at the tips of the branches and solitary, yellow and of
2.5-5 cm diameter. This plant was found growing along the side of a small road in Wadi Thee Gazal near Taif where a number were seen in a small area of the location.
