Matilija poppy

[ muh-til-uh-hah ]

noun

1. a tree poppy, Romneya coulteri, of California and Mexico, having thin, paperlike leaves and large, solitary, white flowers.

Word History and Origins

Origin of Matilija poppy¹

1900–05, Americanism; after the Matilija Canyon, Ventura County, California

Example Sentences

As we meandered along the Arroyo Seco river basin, which was flanked by fields of yellow mustard weed, stalks of purple showy penstemon and feathery clusters of blooming matilija poppy, I offered a little history of the area as well as architectural tidbits about the three grand bridges we passed under.

From Los Angeles Times

The canyon is home to many native plants used by the Chumash and other Indigenous peoples, including white sage, coastal sagebrush, yerba santa, matilija poppy and California bay laurel.

From Los Angeles Times

A more esoteric favorite is the Matilija poppy.

From Los Angeles Times

The thistle-poppy would be considered in any other country a surpassingly beautiful flower, with its large diaphanous white petals and its thistly gray-green foliage, but in California it must yield precedence to the Matilija poppy.

From Project Gutenberg

To this day Average Jones remembers the luminous grace and splendor of a Matilija poppy, which, rooted between two boulders, swayed gently in the white moonlight above a figure of dread.

From Project Gutenberg