Papaver nudicaule
Iceland Poppy
Garðasól

Suðudalur

I find it peculiar that the much loved Iceland Poppy is not a native of Iceland and is in fact considered (by Hörður Kristinsson in Flowering Plants & Ferns of Iceland) to be rather rare. These specimens were found well outside the range documented in the book, so maybe they are spreading? Most of the flowers in this isolated patch were yellow (top picture, upper left) but there were just a few orange ones. You couldn't miss them as these large showy blossoms were growing right along side the road. We spent 15-20 minutes parked in the middle of the road exploring other flowers in the area. No other cars passed...