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Habit Herbs perennial, sometimes suffrutescent, usually strigillose, sometimes glabrous; from a stout taproot. Herbs perennial, densely strigillose throughout, sometimes glandular puberulent distally; from a stout taproot.
Stems

many, ascending to erect, branched from base, 15–30(–40) cm.

several to many, decumbent to ascending, branched, 4–20(–30) cm.

Leaves

2.5–3.5 × 0.1–0.2 cm, rarely fascicles of small leaves present in non-flowering axils;

petiole 0–0.1 cm;

blade linear to narrowly linear-lanceolate, folded lengthwise, base long-attenuate, margins subentire or serrulate, apex acute.

0.6–5 × 0.08–0.6 cm, fascicles of small leaves 0.2–1 cm often present in non-flowering axils;

petiole 0 cm;

blade narrowly lanceolate or narrowly oblanceolate, base attenuate to truncate, sometimes clasping, margins entire or subentire, sometimes revolute, sometimes weakly undulate, apex acute to obtuse.

Flowers

opening near sunrise;

buds with free tips 0–0.5 mm;

floral tube 7 mm;

sepals 4–6 mm, midribs keeled;

petals yellow, fading yellow to orange, 15–20 mm; antisepalous filaments 5 mm, antipetalous filaments 2 mm, anthers 3–4 mm, pollen 90–100% fertile;

style 10 mm, stigma discoid to quadrangular, exserted beyond anthers at anthesis.

usually 1 per stem opening per day near sunset;

buds with free tips 0.3–3 mm;

floral tube 25–60 mm, funnelform in distal 1/2 or less;

sepals 8–20 mm;

petals yellow, fading pale pink or pale purple, 12–28 mm;

filaments 6–12 mm, anthers 5–11 mm, pollen 85–100% fertile;

style 30–75 mm, stigma yellow, quadrangular, usually exserted beyond anthers.

Capsules

18–20 × 2 mm, hard, dehiscent 1/2 their length, often tardily dehiscent throughout their length.

6–25 × 1–3 mm, hard, promptly dehiscent throughout their length.

Seeds

oblanceoloid, 1–1.8 mm, sharply angled, apex truncate.

obovoid, 1.5–2.5 mm.

2n

= 14.

= 14.

Oenothera gayleana

Oenothera lavandulifolia

Phenology Flowering May–Sep. Flowering Apr–Aug.
Habitat Gypsum outcrops. Local and sparse, on sandy and rocky, calcareous soil, high plains, mountains, often with Artemisia tridentata, Cercocarpus, Juniperus, Pinus edulis, or P. monophylla, sometimes in lower zones with Larrea, or in higher zones with P. ponderosa.
Elevation 500–1400 m. (1600–4600 ft.) 600–2800 m. (2000–9200 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
NM; TX
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AZ; CO; KS; NE; NM; OK; SD; TX; WY; Mexico (Nuevo León)
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Oenothera gayleana is a recently discovered gypsum endemic known only from scattered outcrops from De Baca and Eddy counties in New Mexico, and Culberson County in Texas. When published, the delimitation of O. gayleana included populations in Collinsworth and Dickens counties in the Texas panhandle, and adjacent Harmon County in Oklahoma. Subsequent study (B. Cooper et al., unpubl.) has determined they are actually O. serrulata.

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

Oenothera lavandulifolia is known from southern Fall River County, South Dakota, southeastern Wyoming, and far western Nebraska, through western Kansas, Colorado, eastern and southern Utah, northwestern Oklahoma, and the Texas Panhandle to trans-Pecos Texas, central New Mexico, northern and central Arizona, and eastern Nevada. It also occurs in Nuevo León, Mexico, and may be more widespread in northern Mexico. H. F. Towner (1977) found that O. lavandulifolia is self-incompatible and vespertine.

(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. Calylophus > subsect. Calylophus Onagraceae > subfam. Onagroideae > tribe Onagreae > Oenothera > sect. Calylophus > subsect. Salpingia
Sibling taxa
O. acutissima, O. albicaulis, O. argillicola, O. arida, O. arizonica, O. biennis, O. boquillensis, O. brachycarpa, O. calcicola, 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. 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. calcicola, 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. 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 Calylophus hartwegii subsp. lavandulifolius, C. hartwegii var. lavandulifolius, C. lavandulifolius, Galpinsia lavandulifolia, G. lavandulifolia var. glandulosa, O. hartwegii var. lavandulifolia, O. lavandulifolia var. glandulosa
Name authority B. L. Turner & M. J. Moore: Phytologia 96: 200, figs. 1, 2. (2014) Torrey & A. Gray: Fl. N. Amer. 1: 501. (1840) — (as lavandulaefolia)
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