The green links below add additional plants to the comparison table. Blue links lead to other Web sites.
enable glossary links
Photo is of parent taxon

variableleaf evening primrose

variableleaf evening primrose

Habit Herbs densely to sparsely strigillose, also at least parts of inflorescence sparsely hirsute with spreading, pustulate-based hairs, and often glandular puberulent and villous. Herbs annual or short-lived perennial, sparsely to densely strigillose, inflorescence sometimes also sparsely glandular puberulent, villous, or sparsely hirsute with spreading, pustulate-based hairs, or sometimes glabrate.
Stems

unbranched or branched mainly in distal part, 25–70 cm.

Leaves

in a basal rosette and cauline, basal 7–15 × 1–2.5 cm, cauline 3–13 ×0.4–2.3 cm;

blade narrowly oblanceolate to oblanceolate, gradually narrowly lanceolate to lanceolate or elliptic distally, margins deeply lobed to remotely dentate or subentire;

bracts longer than capsule they subtend, 1–3 cm.

Inflorescences

dense, often with several lateral branches, mature buds usually overtopping spike apex.

Flowers

buds with free tips spreading, 2–6 mm;

floral tube 25–42 mm;

sepals 15–28 mm;

petals 18–35 mm.

2–several per spike opening per day near sunset;

buds erect, with free tips erect or spreading, 1–6 mm;

floral tube nearly straight, 25–47 mm;

sepals 15–30 mm;

petals yellow, broadly elliptic to nearly rhombic, 18–35 mm;

filaments 15–30 mm, anthers 3–8 mm, pollen 85–100% fertile;

style 45–75 mm, stigma usually exserted beyond anthers at anthesis.

Capsules

lanceoloid, 13–25 × 2.5–4 mm.

Seeds

brown, often flecked with darker spots, ellipsoid to broadly ellipsoid, 1.1–1.8 × 0.4–0.8 mm.

2n

= 14.

Oenothera heterophylla subsp. heterophylla

Oenothera heterophylla

Phenology Flowering Jun–Sep.
Habitat Sandy to sandy-loam soil of open sites in woodlands, with Persea borbonia, Pinus echinata, P. palustris, Quercus incana, Q. marilandica, Q. stellata, and Q. virginiana.
Elevation 0–200 m. (0–700 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
LA; TX
[BONAP county map]
from USDA
s United States
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Populations of subsp. heterophylla were determined by W. Dietrich and W. L. Wagner (1988) to be self-incompatible. It occurs in a narrow range from eastern Texas (Austin, Bastrop, Brazos, Cass, Chambers, Cherokee, Dallas, Freestone, Gonzales, Gregg, Hardin, Harris, Henderson, Hopkins, Houston, Jasper, Lee, Leon, Liberty, Limestone, Nacogdoches, Newton, Robertson, Rusk, Sabine, San Augustine, San Jacinto, Smith, Sutton, Travis, Tyler, Upshur, Van Zandt, Victoria, Waller, and Wood counties) and southwestern Louisiana (Caddo, Calcasieu, Erwin, Natchitoches,and Winn parishes). It is known from several historical specimens in St. Louis, Missouri, as an adventive but is apparently no longer growing in that area.

Oenothera variifolia Steudel is a superfluous name that pertains here.

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

Subspecies 2 (2 in the flora).

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

Key
1. Herbs densely to sparsely strigillose, also at least parts of inflorescence sparsely hirsute with spreading, pustulate-based hairs, and often glandular puberulent and villous; flower buds with free tips spreading, 2–6 mm.
subsp. heterophylla
1. Herbs densely to sparsely strigillose, also at least part of inflorescence glabrate or glandular puberulent; flower buds with free tips erect, 1–3 mm.
subsp. orientalis
Source FNA vol. 10. FNA vol. 10.
Parent taxa Onagraceae > subfam. Onagroideae > tribe Onagreae > Oenothera > sect. Oenothera > subsect. Candela > Oenothera heterophylla Onagraceae > subfam. Onagroideae > tribe Onagreae > Oenothera > sect. Oenothera > subsect. Candela
Sibling taxa
O. heterophylla subsp. orientalis
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. 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
Subordinate taxa
O. heterophylla subsp. heterophylla, O. heterophylla subsp. orientalis
Synonyms O. pyramidalis var. lindheimeri Raimannia heterophylla
Name authority unknown Spach: Nouv. Ann. Mus. Hist. Nat. 4: 348. (1836)
Web links