Burke: Oenothera suffrutescens vs. Oenothera capillifolia

	Oenothera suffrutescens	Oenothera capillifolia
	scarlet beeblossom
Habit	Glabrous to stiff-hairy perennial, the stems several, decumbent, simple or freely-branched, 2-6 dm. tall.
Leaves	Leaves alternate, many, sessile, linear-lanceolate to oblong-lanceolate, 1-3 cm. long, with a few shallow teeth, reduced upward.
Flowers	Inflorescence of many-flowered spikes 5-20 cm. long, with bracts 3-9 mm. long; calyx tube slender, 5-9 mm. long, with 4 distinct, reflexed lobes; petals 4, red, pink or nearly white, 3-6 mm. long including the narrow claw, the blade oval to rhombic; stamens 8, filaments 3-5 mm. long, with tiny, linear scales at the base; style slightly longer than the stamens; stigma with 4 short, oval lobes from a cup-like base; ovary inferior, 4-celled.
Fruits	Fruit hardened, 5-9 mm. long, somewhat spindle-shaped, sharply 4-angled, winged on the upper half.

	Oenothera suffrutescens	Oenothera capillifolia
Flowering time	June - August
Habitat	Dry, open slopes, chiefly in the sagebrush area.
Distribution	Reported from Bingen, Washington - unclear as to whether truly native or a garden escape; chiefly east of the Rockies, but crossing into western Montana. [WildflowerSearch map] [BONAP county map]
Origin	Native
Conservation status	Not of concern
Sibling taxa	O. biennis, O. cespitosa, O. curtiflora, O. elata, O. flava, O. glazioviana, O. pallida	O. biennis, O. cespitosa, O. curtiflora, O. elata, O. flava, O. glazioviana, O. pallida, O. suffrutescens
Web links	Local floras: BC, CA, WA Local Web sites: CalFlora, CalPhotos, Flora NW, PNW Herbaria WildflowerSearch iNaturalist (observations) USDA Plants Database LBJ Wildflower Center SEINet Plants of the World Online Encyclopedia of Life Wikipedia Google Image Search	WildflowerSearch iNaturalist (observations) LBJ Wildflower Center SEINet Plants of the World Online Encyclopedia of Life Wikipedia Google Image Search

Oenothera suffrutescens

Oenothera capillifolia

scarlet beeblossom

Habit

Glabrous to stiff-hairy perennial, the stems several, decumbent, simple or freely-branched, 2-6 dm. tall.

Leaves

Leaves alternate, many, sessile, linear-lanceolate to oblong-lanceolate, 1-3 cm. long, with a few shallow teeth, reduced upward.

Flowers

Inflorescence of many-flowered spikes 5-20 cm. long, with bracts 3-9 mm. long;

calyx tube slender, 5-9 mm. long, with 4 distinct, reflexed lobes;

petals 4, red, pink or nearly white, 3-6 mm. long including the narrow claw, the blade oval to rhombic;

stamens 8, filaments 3-5 mm. long, with tiny, linear scales at the base;

style slightly longer than the stamens;

stigma with 4 short, oval lobes from a cup-like base;

ovary inferior, 4-celled.

Fruits

Fruit hardened, 5-9 mm. long, somewhat spindle-shaped, sharply 4-angled, winged on the upper half.

Oenothera suffrutescens

Oenothera capillifolia

Flowering time

June - August

Habitat

Dry, open slopes, chiefly in the sagebrush area.

Distribution

Reported from Bingen, Washington - unclear as to whether truly native or a garden escape; chiefly east of the Rockies, but crossing into western Montana.

[WildflowerSearch map]

[BONAP county map]

Origin

Native

Conservation status

Not of concern

Sibling taxa