Oenothera deltoides
Oenothera pallida
basket evening-primrose, birdcage evening primrose, desert lantern, devil's lantern, dune primrose, hairy evening primrose, lion-in-a-cage
mountain evening primrose, pale evening-primrose, rockweed brush, white-stem evening primrose
central stem usually erect, usually thickened at base and spongy, branched or unbranched, branches few–several, slender, decumbent to ascending, from base, usually encircling central stem in older plants, 10–40(–100) cm.
erect or ascending, single to several from base, unbranched or many-branched throughout, 10–50(–70) cm.
in a basal rosette and cauline, rosette usually well developed (except subsp. howellii), basal 5–25 × 1–5 cm, cauline 4–12(–18) × 0.5–4 cm;
petiole 1.5–8 cm;
blade rhombic-obovate, lanceolate, or oblanceolate, margins subentire, dentate, or pinnatifid.
cauline, rosette usually weakly developed or absent, at least during flowering, sometimes well developed, 1–5(–7.8) × 0.3–1(–1.5) cm;
petiole 0–2(–4.5) cm;
blade lanceolate, oblong, linear-lanceolate, or ovate, margins subentire or remotely denticulate, deeply sinuate-dentate, or pinnatifid, sometimes repand.
1–several opening per day near sunset;
buds nodding, weakly or strongly quadrangular or fluted in distal 1/2, with free tips 0–9 mm;
floral tube 20–40 mm;
sepals (13–)15–35 mm, not spotted;
petals white, fading pink to deep pink, broadly obovate or obcordate, 15–44 mm;
filaments 8–15 mm, anthers 5–14 mm;
style 35–60 mm, stigma exserted beyond anthers at anthesis.
1–several opening per day near sunset;
buds nodding, weakly quadrangular, with free tips 0–2 mm;
floral tube 15–40 mm;
sepals 10–30 mm, not spotted;
petals white, fading pink to deep pink, broadly obovate or obcordate, (10–)15–25(–40) mm;
filaments 9–15 mm, anthers 3–10 mm;
style 25–55 mm, stigma exserted beyond anthers at anthesis.
spreading, straight to curved, becoming somewhat woody in age, cylindrical to slightly 4-angled, widest toward base, tapering from base to apex, (15–)30–80 × 1.5–5 mm;
sessile.
spreading to reflexed, straight to curved or contorted, cylindrical, obtusely 4-angled, tapering slightly from base to apex, 15–60 × 1.5–2.5 mm;
sessile.
numerous, in 1 row per locule, buff with dark spots or black, narrowly obovoid, 1.5–2.8 mm.
numerous, in 1 row per locule, brownish with dark spots or black, narrowly obovoid, 1.5–2.2 mm.
Oenothera deltoides
Oenothera pallida
Subspecies 5 (5 in the flora).
Oenothera deltoides is self-incompatible or self-compatible (W. M. Klein 1964; W. L. Wagner et al. 2007; K. E. Theiss et al. 2010).
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Subspecies 4 (4 in the flora).
Oenothera pallida is a poorly understood species currently subdivided into four subspecies (W. L. Wagner et al. 2007) that differ largely in aspect, leaf division, capsule configuration, and pubescence. The variation pattern is rather complex with almost no diagnostic character uniformly distinguishing any one of the subspecies. Instead, each of the subspecies, which are mostly geographically separated although there is some level of overlap, have diagnostic suites of characters that maintain their linkage some of the time, but break down across the geographic area of each so that no single character uniquely identifies it. Each subspecies is characterized by leaf, pubescence, and, often, habit features. The issues with the integrity and intergradations of the subspecies are discussed below.
Oenothera pallida has been determined to be self-incompatible (W. L. Wagner et al. 2007), but K. E. Theiss et al. (2010) determined that although most populations of subsp. pallida are self-incompatible, one near Salt Lake City is self-compatible.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
1. Herbs perennial, from long, fleshy roots; stems not thickened at base, branches erect or ascending, not encircling stems in older plants. | subsp. howellii |
1. Herbs annual or short-lived perennial from a taproot; stems usually thickened at base, branches ascending or decumbent, often encircling stems in older plants. | → 2 |
2. Flower buds fluted or strongly quadrangular in distal 1/2, without free tips, villous with curly hairs, sometimes glabrous; leaf blade margins sinuate-dentate to pinnatifid; petals 15–25(–30) mm; capsules 15–25(–30) mm. | subsp. piperi |
2. Flower buds weakly or strongly quadrangular in distal 1/2, with free tips 0–3 mm, strigillose, sparsely to moderately villous, or glabrous; leaf blade margins sinuate-dentate or subentire, rarely pinnatifid; petals 15–44 mm; capsules 40–80 mm. | → 3 |
3. Flower buds with free tips 1–3 mm, quadrangular in distal 1/2; plants strigillose, especially distally. | subsp. ambigua |
3. Flower buds with free tips 0–1.5 mm, weakly quadrangular in distal 1/2; plants glabrous, villous, or strigillose. | → 4 |
4. Herbs annual, strigillose, sometimes also villous; capsules 2–3.5 mm diam.; flower buds with free tips 0–1.5 mm. | subsp. deltoides |
4. Herbs short-lived perennial or sometimes annual, glabrous or sparsely villous, rarely also strigillose; capsules 3–5 mm diam.; flower buds without free tips. | subsp. cognata |
1. Herbs annual, sometimes perennial from a taproot, when perennial, sometimes with lateral roots producing adventitious shoots, strigillose throughout and villous distally, especially on flower parts. | subsp. trichocalyx |
1. Herbs perennial from a taproot and with lateral roots producing adventitious shoots, glabrous, strigillose, or sparsely villous. | → 2 |
2. Plants glabrous, sometimes strigillose, rarely sparsely villous; leaf blade margins usually subentire or remotely denticulate, rarely pinnatifid; capsules usually contorted to curved. | subsp. pallida |
2. Plants usually strigillose, rarely villous or glabrous; leaf blade margins shallowly sinuate-dentate or denticulate, or deeply sinuate-dentate to pinnatifid, rarely only dentate; capsules usually straight or curved, sometimes contorted. | → 3 |
3. Leaf blades (0.4–)0.7–1.5 cm wide, margins shallowly sinuate-dentate or denticulate. | subsp. latifolia |
3. Leaf blades 0.4–1(–1.5) cm wide, margins usually deeply sinuate-dentate to pinnatifid, rarely dentate only. | subsp. runcinata |
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