Opium field

[wildherbalian85]

Stumbled onto this field today and thought i had teleported to Afghanistan

Any idea as to why there is this massive and very deliberate crop of white opium poppies. The field was at least the size of 10 football pitches - maybe even bigger.

Just a couple of snaps - i couldn't fit the whole field in one frame or even two.







I also have a video clip but i will add that later.

[mrs fish]

I would of thought if it was growing for medical use that it would be very well fenced off/protected

[wildherbalian85]

Originally Posted by mrs fish

I would of thought if it was growing for medical use that it would be very well fenced off/protected

Well if it was for medical use then they have an awful lot of "tapping" to do

My two thoughts were either: For the opium or for the seeds.

Im curious but don't they make an oil from poppy seed??

[wildherbalian85]

not brilliant video i know but....

all that white is the flowering poppies and it stretched for at least half a KM


YouTube - opium field

[Pete Collins]

I came across a similar field in South Oxfordshire a couple of weeks ago. I did a search on the internet and found that a company had been licensed to grow Opium Poppies for medicinal purposes, somewhere near Didcot. The field I saw wasn't too far from Didcot, so I assumed it was the same company.

I came across a single Opium Poppy here in South Beds yesterday. I've posted the photo already on another thread, but here it is again:

[zail]

Errmm, am I missing something here? If there is a world wide shortage of morphine (this is what the articles I googled after I read this said) and we are now growing opium poppies here why can the farmers in afganistan be encouraged to sell their crop through legitimate routes on the world markets and not produce for the illegal trade? After all, very few other crops can be grown in the himalayas.....

Would it come down to politics by any chance or is that too cynical a response?

[wildherbalian85]

Originally Posted by Pete Collins

I came across a similar field in South Oxfordshire a couple of weeks ago. I did a search on the internet and found that a company had been licensed to grow Opium Poppies for medicinal purposes, somewhere near Didcot. The field I saw wasn't too far from Didcot, so I assumed it was the same company.

I came across a single Opium Poppy here in South Beds yesterday. I've posted the photo already on another thread, but here it is again:

Interesting. I know that opium poppies are often grown for ornamental purposes in gardens and that they are also a common plant of disturbed ground infact they tend to pop up just about everywere even between the cracks in pavements.

Surely though if it was for medical purposes then it would have been sealed off??

[wildherbalian85]

Originally Posted by zail

Errmm, am I missing something here? If there is a world wide shortage of morphine and we are now growing opium poppies here why can the farmers in Afghanistan be encouraged to sell their crop through legitimate routes on the world markets and not produce for the illegal trade? After all, very few other crops can be grown in the himalayas.....

Would it come down to politics by any chance or is that too cynical a response?

Firstly the Himalayas are not in Afghanistan - also the Himalayas is renowned for forests of cannabis sativa.

With regards to buying it from the Afghani's i think it is mainly down to ethics... money from opium fields funds the terrorist's. We used to get our opium from southeast Asia but most is now grown in Europe (cheaper, easier).

[Pete Collins]

Originally Posted by wildherbalian85

...
Surely though if it was for medical purposes then it would have been sealed off??

No, surprisingly, it wasn't. There were bridleways along the edges of woods on two sides of the field, and no fence between the wood and the field at all.

[wildherbalian85]

Originally Posted by Pete Collins

No, surprisingly, it wasn't. There were bridleways along the edges of woods on two sides of the field, and no fence between the wood and the field at all.

But to abstract the opium the poppies need to be tapped (milked) whilst still growing so as to allow maximum yield of the crude opium - this then must harvested. The problem with an open field is that anybody could come along and help themselfs to the crude opium because they should be left to milk for a two or three days... its all daft if you ask me.

[zail]

Originally Posted by wildherbalian85

Firstly the Himalayas are not in Afghanistan - also the Himalayas is renowned for forests of cannabis sativa.

Oops - geography not my strongest point - apologies - high mountains and plateau land is what I meant when I said Himalayas

Originally Posted by wildherbalian85

With regards to buying it from the Afghani's i think it is mainly down to ethics... money from opium fields funds the terrorist's. We used to get our opium from southeast Asia but most is now grown in Europe (cheaper, easier).

My point here was that if the main crop of Afganistan were legitimised through trading for production of legal medicinal morphine rather than illegally traded heroin then ordinary farmers whio have difficulty growing otehr crops would have a market for their crop, would not have to sell through or work for terrorists etc etc. Just seems ridiculous and wasteful that vast amounts of money are being spent on destroying a crop in one country that could solve a problem in another...

[jimmer]

I have seen about three fields of Opium poppies here in Dorset Mmmmmmm

[Kayleigh]

Originally Posted by wildherbalian85

Interesting. I know that opium poppies are often grown for ornamental purposes in gardens and that they are also a common plant of disturbed ground infact they tend to pop up just about everywere even between the cracks in pavements.

Surely though if it was for medical purposes then it would have been sealed off??

I had one of these growing in my garden last year. It came from the bird seed..
There is an interesting weed growing in my green house..
But thats another thread with pics for ID.

[wildherbalian85]

Originally Posted by Kayleigh

I had one of these growing in my garden last year. It came from the bird seed..
There is an interesting weed growing in my green house..
But thats another thread with pics for ID.

Are you sure it came from bird seed?? What i mean is that its so common a weed that it could have popped up from disturbed ground or more likely the seed came with the wind.

I posted this picture before in annother thread but i just want to show what i mean by growing just about anywere.. even from cracks in pavement

[galanthus]

We found lots of them in a disused garage area where rubble was abundant, they seemed to thrive in it. Hardy things.

[wildherbalian85]

Originally Posted by galanthus

We found lots of them in a disused garage area where rubble was abundant, they seemed to thrive in it. Hardy things.

Indeed they are.

Oh here is another picture this time of some of the many that had sprung up in the middle of knowere (Farlington Roundabout just by eastern road bridge) after recent road works.

[Kayleigh]

Originally Posted by wildherbalian85

Are you sure it came from bird seed?? What i mean is that its so common a weed that it could have popped up from disturbed ground or more likely the seed came with the wind.

I posted this picture before in annother thread but i just want to show what i mean by growing just about anywere.. even from cracks in pavement

It could have come from anywhere then.

[Dan Salter]

And there was me getting a pounding in another thread for suggesting that oriental/ornamental/opium poppies are a little bit of a nuiscance (in terms of rapid spread and possibly outcompeting)..i admit they are gorgeous to look at but i feel are very unnatural in the wider countryside.

Medicinal is a good suggestion for these crop fields...but as mentioned, opium poppy seeds are also used in birdfoods and baking! yes, poppy seed covered rolls and bread are the seeds from this variety and not the 'native/usual' red poppies of home...so i read in a book anyway...

So maybe that Warburton's Son has something to do with it? ...ha ha

[wildherbalian85]

Originally Posted by Dan Salter

And there was me getting a pounding in another thread for suggesting that oriental/ornamental/opium poppies are a little bit of a nuiscance (in terms of rapid spread and possibly outcompeting)..i admit they are gorgeous to look at but i feel are very unnatural in the wider countryside.

Medicinal is a good suggestion for these crop fields...but as mentioned, opium poppy seeds are also used in birdfoods and baking! yes, poppy seed covered rolls and bread are the seeds from this variety and not the 'native/usual' red poppies of home...so i read in a book anyway...

So maybe that Warburton's Son has something to do with it? ...ha ha

Yes you are correct opium poppy seeds are widely used in cooking.

I just read in my book (should have done that earlier) that the oil is used in paints and ointments. The poppy is also widely cultivated across Europe (UK included) and prefares loose clay/ sandy soils. It will also self seed itself year after year.

[wildherbalian85]

Just found this interesting article about opium farms in the UK... funny enough the tree's in the back ground on the main photo look similar to the one's at the location i found.

The opium fields of England... heroin-producing poppies grown to make NHS pain-relief drugs | Mail Online

[mrs fish]

Originally Posted by wildherbalian85

The opium fields of England... heroin-producing poppies grown to make NHS pain-relief drugs | Mail Online

That answers all our questions, good find

It is a shame that Afghanistan can't sell their opium legally to the medical world
They probably get more money selling it as Heroin

[IanS]

Yes very interesting article. Thanks for posting...

[Pete Collins]

Thanks for posting that article, very interesting.

[Pete Collins]

A couple of photos of the field of Opium Poppies I saw in Oxfordshire. They were taken on 23rd June.