| Distribution
Native and cultivated in Mediterranean region east to Iran; now cultivated in many tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate countries. Presently known to be cultivated for the opium in India, Iran, Turkey, Yugoslavia, Macedonia, Bulgaria, China, Manchuria, and Asia, and in other parts of Europe and India for the seeds. Cultivated in Japan and Australia for medicinal purposes.
Ecology
Thrives in rich, well-manured soil, in hot to warm regions. Deep, warm, moderately moist, medium heavy soils, well cultivated, and limed meet the requirements for poppy growing. Soils with pH neutral or slightly alkaline preferable. Ranging from Cool Temperate Wet Steppe to Wet through Subtropical Dry to Moist Forest Life Zones, poppy is reported to tolerate annual precipitation of 3.1 to 17.3 dm (mean of 34 cases = 16.0), annual temperature of 5.6 to 23.5°C (mean of 34 cases = 10.9), and pH of 4.9 to 8.2 (mean of 25 cases = 6.5). It does poorly in the humid tropics.
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