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Howard's evening-primrose

Mexican evening primrose, pinkladies, showy evening primrose

Habit Herbs acaulescent or sometimes caulescent, moderately to densely strigillose and glandular puberulent, sometimes also sparsely to moderately hirsute; from a taproot, sometimes lateral roots producing adventitious shoots. Herbs perennial, caulescent, glabrate to strigillose, usually also sparsely hirsute; from slender taproot and spreading by rhizomes.
Stems

(when present) ascending, longer ones becoming decumbent, leafy, sometimes densely so, 0–10(–30) cm.

many, erect, 4–60 cm.

Leaves

in a basal rosette, sometimes also cauline, (6–)8.5–17(–23) × (0.5–)1–2(–3) cm;

petiole 2–7.5 cm;

blade usually oblanceolate, elliptic to narrowly oblong, rarely lanceolate, margins often undulate, entire or remotely and irregularly pinnately lobed mostly in proximal 1/2, rarely more regularly pinnately lobed and lobing extending to distal 1/2, sinuses usually extending less than 1/2 to midrib, lobes triangular to oblong or linear, (1–)4–9(–13) mm, apex acute to obtuse.

in a basal rosette and cauline, basal 2–9 × 0.3–3.2 cm, blade oblanceolate to obovate, margins subentire or sinuate-pinnatifid;

cauline 1–10 × 0.3–3.5 cm, blade narrowly elliptic to ovate, margins subentire or serrulate to sinuate-pinnatifid.

Inflorescences

sharply nodding.

Flowers

usually 1 or 2, rarely more, opening per day near sunset, strongly and sweetly scented;

buds with unequal free tips 1–3(–4) mm;

floral tube (43–)60–110(–125) mm;

sepals (30–)35–60(–80) mm;

petals brilliant yellow, fading deep red, drying deep reddish purple to reddish brown, usually broadly obovate, rarely subrhombic, (30–)40–60(–73) mm, sometimes with a terminal tooth;

filaments (19–)25–38 mm, anthers 10–17 mm;

style(90–)110–145(–165) mm, stigma exserted beyond anthers at anthesis.

1–3 opening per day near sunrise in some populations, near sunset in others;

buds with free tips 0–4 mm;

floral tube 12–25 mm;

sepals 15–50 mm;

petals pink to rose, fading darker, or white, fading pink, 15–45 mm;

filaments 10–22 mm, anthers 6–16 mm, pollen 85–100% fertile;

style 20–55 mm, stigma exserted beyond anthers at anthesis.

Capsules

leathery, ovoid, narrowly ovoid, or narrowly lanceoloid to broadly ellipsoid, winged, wings (2–)4–7(–11) mm wide, body (20–)25–50(–80) × 4–6 mm, dehiscent 1/4–1/3 their length;

pedicel 2–6 mm.

narrowly obovoid to narrowly rhombic-ellipsoid, angled, 10–25 × 3.5–6 mm, apex attenuate to a sterile beak, valve midrib prominent, proximal stipe cylindrical, not tapering to base, (4–)8–15 mm;

sessile.

Seeds

numerous, usually in 1 row per locule, rarely in 2 rows toward base, obovoid to subcuboid, 3–8 × 2.5–3.5 mm.

narrowly obovoid, 1–1.2 × 0.5–0.6 mm.

2n

= 28, 42, 56.

= 14, 28, 42.

Oenothera howardii

Oenothera speciosa

Phenology Flowering May–Jul. Flowering (Feb–)Apr–Jul(–Oct).
Habitat Open or rocky areas, in shale, fine-textured sandstones, clays, gypsum, or limestone from High Plains grasslands, open sites in pinyon-juniper woodlands, ponderosa pine-Douglas fir forests. Grasslands, glades, open woodlands, disturbed places, pastures, rail­roads, roadsides, loamy or sandy soil, sometimes clay.
Elevation (1000–)1500–2300(–3000) m. ((3300–)4900–7500(–9800) ft.) 10–900 m. (0–3000 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
CO; KS; NV; UT; WY
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AR; IA; IL; IN; KS; LA; MO; NE; NM; OK; TX; Mexico (Chihuahua, Coahuila, Durango, Nuevo León, San Luis Potosí, Tamaulipas)
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Oenotherahowardii is known from three disjunct areas: three collections on the High Plains (Baca and Otero counties, Colorado, and Hamilton County, Kansas); open yucca-juniper grassland, rocky slopes or disturbed areas on shale substrates along the Colorado counties of Boulder, Denver, Jefferson, and Larimer, and just over the state line in Wyoming; and, common to scattered, mostly on rocky slopes but also in shaded canyon sites on fine-textured red sandstones, clays, gypsum, chalky white degraded limestone or limestone in pinyon-juniper woodland to ponderosa pine-Douglas fir forest in southern Utah and eastern Nevada.

A. Nelson intended to publish Lavauxia howardii as a new combination and base it on Oenothera howardii M. E. Jones (1893), which was not validly published at the time, but inadvertently published L. howardii as a new species. Oenothera howardii (A. Nelson) W. L. Wagner is an isonym.

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

Oenothera speciosa is widely cultivated worldwide for its showy flowers and easy maintenance. It is not known to be definitely naturalized, but tends to persist or become adventive due to its aggressive vegetative reproduction.

(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. Megapterium Onagraceae > subfam. Onagroideae > tribe Onagreae > Oenothera > sect. Hartmannia
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. gayleana, O. glaucifolia, O. glazioviana, O. grandiflora, O. grandis, O. harringtonii, O. hartwegii, O. havardii, O. heterophylla, O. hispida, 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. 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. stricta, O. suffrutescens, O. suffulta, O. tetraptera, O. texensis, O. toumeyi, O. triangulata, O. triloba, O. tubicula, O. villosa, O. wolfii, O. xylocarpa
Synonyms Lavauxiahowardii a. Hartmannia berlandieri, H. reverchonii, O. berlandieri, O. delessertiana, O. hirsuta, O. obtusifolia, O. shimekii, O. spachii, O. speciosa var. berlandieri, O. speciosa var. childsii, O. tetraptera var. childsii, Xylopleurum berlandieri, X. drummondii, X. hirsutum, X. obtusifolium, X. speciosum
Name authority (A. Nelson) M. E. Jones ex Prain in B. D. Jackson et al.: Index Kew., suppl. 3: 121. (1908) — (as howardi) Nuttall: J. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia 2: 119. (1821)
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