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beakpod evening primrose, spotted evening-primrose

Texas beeblossom

Habit Herbs low, forming clumps 10–50 cm diam., densely strigillose throughout; from a taproot, lateral roots producing adventitious shoots. Herbs perennial, clumped, usually sparsely strigillose, rarely glabrate or sparsely villous, hairs erect, sometimes sparsely glandular puberulent distally; from twisted, woody rootstock.
Stems

many-branched from base, leafy, (10–)15–25(–38) cm.

erect, branched below and just above ground, branched also proximal to inflorescences, (40–)60–250 cm.

Leaves

cauline, (0.3–)0.6–1.5(–2.5) × (0.05–)0.15–0.4(–0.6) cm, fascicles of small leaves 0.2–0.6 cm often present in non-flowering axils;

petiole 0–0.1 cm;

blade lanceolate to linear, base cuneate, apex acute.

in a basal rosette and cauline, basal 3–13 × 0.6–2.5 cm, blade spatulate to oblanceolate, cauline (1–)2.5–12 × 0.1–1 cm, blade linear to narrowly oblanceolate, margins slightly to conspicuously sinuate-dentate.

Inflorescences

slender.

Flowers

several opening per day near sunset;

buds usually without free tips, rarely free tips 0.2–0.3 mm;

sepals (7–)8–12 mm;

petals pink, rarely white, streaked or flecked with red, fading bright purple, (8–)10–17 mm;

filaments 6–8 mm, anthers often with red longitudinal stripe, 3–6 mm;

style (16–)22–27 mm, stigma exserted beyond anthers at anthesis.

4-merous, zygomorphic, opening near sunset;

floral tube 3–9 mm;

sepals 6–12 mm;

petals white, fading dark pink to red, slightly unequal, elliptic-obovate, 7–11 mm;

stamens presented in lower 1/2 of flower, filaments 3–7 mm, anthers 2.5–5 mm, pollen 90–100% fertile;

style 9.5–19 mm, stigma exserted beyond anthers at anthesis.

Capsules

woody, ovoid, narrowly winged, wings 0.8–1.5 mm wide, (7–)9–12(–14) × 2–4 mm (excluding wings), abruptly constricted to a conspicuous, sterile beak, (2–)3–4.5 mm, indehiscent;

sessile.

lanceoloid to narrowly ovoid, narrowly 4-winged, 7–12 × 1.5–2.5 mm, tapered to a sterile stipe 2–5 mm.

Seeds

asymmetrically cuneiform or oblanceoloid, 1.2–1.5 × 0.4–0.5 mm.

(2 or)3 or 4(or 5), light brown or reddish brown, 1.5–2.5 × 0.8–1.3 mm.

2n

= 14.

= 14.

Oenothera canescens

Oenothera calcicola

Phenology Flowering May–Aug. Flowering Apr–May.
Habitat Prairie depressions, playas, margins of ditches, temporary wet areas. Dry limestone, gypsum, or caliche soil, slopes.
Elevation (400–)700–1800 m. ((1300–)2300–5900 ft.) 400–1800(–2100) m. (1300–5900(–6900) ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
CO; KS; NE; NM; OK; TX; WY
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
TX; Mexico (Coahuila, Durango, Nuevo León, Tamaulipas)
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Oenothera canescens is restricted to prairie depressions, playas, ditch margins, and other places of temporary water in the High Plains of the western United States from Goshen County, Wyoming, southeast to Hayes County, Nebraska, south through eastern Colorado, the eastern tier of counties in New Mexico, western Kansas, and to Garza and Dawson counties in the Texas Panhandle; also disjunct populations from Chautauqua, Sedgwick, and Stafford counties, Kansas.

The illegitimate names Gaurella guttulata (Geyer ex Hooker) Small, G. canescens (Torrey & Frémont) Cockerell, and Gauropsis guttulata (Geyer ex Hooker) Cockerell pertain here.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Oenothera calcicola occurs at mostly higher elevations and more montane areas than other species of subsect. Stipogaura, from the southern Trans-Pecos and Edwards Plateau regions of Texas southward into northern Mexico. P. H. Raven and D. P. Gregory (1972[1973]) determined O. calcicola to be self-incompatible. It is known to form hybrids with O. suffrutescens.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Source FNA vol. 10. FNA vol. 10.
Parent taxa Onagraceae > subfam. Onagroideae > tribe Onagreae > Oenothera > sect. Gauropsis Onagraceae > subfam. Onagroideae > tribe Onagreae > Oenothera > sect. Gaura > subsect. Stipogaura
Sibling taxa
O. acutissima, O. albicaulis, O. argillicola, O. arida, O. arizonica, O. biennis, O. boquillensis, O. brachycarpa, O. calcicola, O. californica, O. capillifolia, O. cavernae, O. cespitosa, O. cinerea, O. clelandii, O. coloradensis, O. cordata, O. coronopifolia, O. coryi, O. curtiflora, O. curtissii, O. deltoides, O. demareei, O. dodgeniana, O. drummondii, O. elata, O. engelmannii, O. falfurriae, O. filiformis, O. filipes, O. flava, O. fruticosa, O. gaura, O. gayleana, O. glaucifolia, O. glazioviana, O. grandiflora, O. grandis, O. harringtonii, O. hartwegii, O. havardii, O. heterophylla, O. hispida, O. howardii, O. humifusa, O. jamesii, O. kunthiana, O. laciniata, O. lavandulifolia, O. lindheimeri, O. linifolia, O. longissima, O. macrocarpa, O. mckelveyae, O. mexicana, O. nealleyi, O. neomexicana, O. nutans, O. nuttallii, O. oakesiana, O. organensis, O. pallida, O. parviflora, O. patriciae, O. perennis, O. pilosella, O. platanorum, O. podocarpa, O. primiveris, O. psammophila, O. pubescens, O. rhombipetala, O. riparia, O. rosea, O. serrulata, O. sessilis, O. simulans, O. sinuosa, O. spachiana, O. speciosa, O. stricta, O. suffrutescens, O. suffulta, O. tetraptera, O. texensis, O. toumeyi, O. triangulata, O. triloba, O. tubicula, O. villosa, O. wolfii, O. xylocarpa
O. acutissima, O. albicaulis, O. argillicola, O. arida, O. arizonica, O. biennis, O. boquillensis, O. brachycarpa, O. californica, O. canescens, O. capillifolia, O. cavernae, O. cespitosa, O. cinerea, O. clelandii, O. coloradensis, O. cordata, O. coronopifolia, O. coryi, O. curtiflora, O. curtissii, O. deltoides, O. demareei, O. dodgeniana, O. drummondii, O. elata, O. engelmannii, O. falfurriae, O. filiformis, O. filipes, O. flava, O. fruticosa, O. gaura, O. gayleana, O. glaucifolia, O. glazioviana, O. grandiflora, O. grandis, O. harringtonii, O. hartwegii, O. havardii, O. heterophylla, O. hispida, O. howardii, O. humifusa, O. jamesii, O. kunthiana, O. laciniata, O. lavandulifolia, O. lindheimeri, O. linifolia, O. longissima, O. macrocarpa, O. mckelveyae, O. mexicana, O. nealleyi, O. neomexicana, O. nutans, O. nuttallii, O. oakesiana, O. organensis, O. pallida, O. parviflora, O. patriciae, O. perennis, O. pilosella, O. platanorum, O. podocarpa, O. primiveris, O. psammophila, O. pubescens, O. rhombipetala, O. riparia, O. rosea, O. serrulata, O. sessilis, O. simulans, O. sinuosa, O. spachiana, O. speciosa, O. stricta, O. suffrutescens, O. suffulta, O. tetraptera, O. texensis, O. toumeyi, O. triangulata, O. triloba, O. tubicula, O. villosa, O. wolfii, O. xylocarpa
Synonyms Gaurella canescens, Megapterium canescens, O. guttulata Gaura calcicola
Name authority Torrey & Frémont in J. C. Fremont: Rep. Exped. Rocky Mts., 315. (1845) (P. H. Raven & D. P. Gregory) W. L. Wagner & Hoch: Syst. Bot. Monogr. 83: 211. (2007)
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