Poppies have been cultivated for centuries for their flowers, seed pods, and narcotic purposes. The petals are large and ruffled and many varieties self-seed. Connect science with social studies as you learn about the historic significance of the poppy plant below.

This little bee was hidden among the petals.

Learn more about the variety of poppies. Watch full screen here.

During World War I, the red flowered poppy became a symbol of remembrance following the trench warfare in the poppy fields of Flanders, Belgium. In Flanders Fields, written by John McCrae in 1915, is one of the most famous wartime poems.

When I visited the Tower of London last fall, I learned that for several months in 2014 (the centenary anniversary of Britain joining World War I), the moat around the tower was filled with 888,246 handmade ceramic pansies honoring the British soldiers who died during the war. A team of nearly 20,000 volunteers installed the memorial entitled Blood Swept Land and Seas of Red. The moat was chosen for the display because many regiments trained at the tower before leaving for the Western Front.

Watch full screen here.