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seabeach evening-primrose

shale barren evening primrose

Habit Herbs annual or short-lived perennial, densely strigillose, sometimes also villous, also becoming glandular puberulent distally. Herbs biennial or short-lived perennial, strigillose and sparsely to moderately villous, hairs sometimes pustulate, pustules with green or red bases, inflorescence glabrous or sparsely glandular puberulent, sometimes also sparsely villous.
Stems

erect to decumbent, much branched, 10–50(–90) cm.

erect to ascending, green or red, unbranched or with branches obliquely arising from rosette or in distal 1/2 of main stem.

Leaves

in a basal rosette and cauline, basal 4–8 × 0.7–1 cm, cauline 1–7 × 0.3–1.5 cm;

blade usually grayish green, narrowly oblong to narrowly elliptic or narrowly obovate, margins remotely shallowly dentate to subentire;

bracts spreading, flat.

in a basal rosette and cauline, basal 7–25 × 0.7–2 cm, cauline 6–13 × 0.4–1 cm;

blade dark green, somewhat glossy, very narrowly oblanceolate to narrowly oblanceolate, linear-elliptic, lanceolate, or nearly linear, margins flat, entire or remotely and bluntly dentate, sometimes with larger teeth near base;

bracts persistent.

Inflorescences

curved with ascending tip, unbranched.

Flowers

usually 1 opening per day near sunset;

buds erect, with free tips erect and appressed or slightly spreading, 0.5–2 mm;

floral tube 15–35 mm;

sepals3–11 mm;

petals yellow, very broadly obovate or obcordate, 4.5–16 mm;

filaments 4–11 mm, anthers 2–5.5 mm, pollen ca. 50% fertile;

style 23–45 mm, stigma surrounded by anthers at anthesis.

opening near sunset;

buds erect, 4–8 mm diam., with free tips subterminal, divergent and hornlike, 3–9 mm;

floral tube 32–52 mm;

sepals yellowish green to yellow, sometimes flushed with red, especially at apex, 27–38 mm;

petals yellow to pale yellow, fading pale yellow to pale yellowish orange, very broadly obcordate or obovate, 25–42 mm;

filaments 20–27 mm, anthers 9–13 mm, pollen 90–100% fertile;

style 60–85 mm, stigma exserted beyond anthers at anthesis.

Capsules

cylindrical, sometimes slightly enlarged toward apex, 15–45 × 2–3 mm.

spreading at nearly a right angle to stem, curved upward, sometimes secund, dull green or rusty brown when dry, narrowly lanceoloid to lanceoloid, 20–40 × 4–6 mm, free tips of valves 1–2 mm.

Seeds

usually ellipsoid to broadly ellipsoid, rarely subglobose, 1–2 × 0.5–0.9 mm.

1.3–1.9 × 0.7–1.1 mm.

2n

= 14.

= 14.

Oenothera humifusa

Oenothera argillicola

Phenology Flowering Apr–Nov. Flowering (Jun–)Jul–Oct.
Habitat Dunes, open sandy places along or near Atlantic coast. Open sites on Devonian Brallier shale slopes, barrens, outcrops or adjacent roadsides in mid-Appalachian Allegheny Mountains.
Elevation 0–10 m. (0–0 ft.) 150–700 m. (500–2300 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
AL; DE; FL; GA; LA; MD; MS; NC; NJ; PA; SC; VA; Dunes; open sandy places along or near Atlantic coast; West Indies (Cuba); Bermuda
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
MD; PA; VA; WV
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Oenothera humifusa is a PTH species and forms a ring of 14 chromosomes in meiosis, and is self-compatible and autogamous (W. Dietrich and W. L. Wagner 1988). The inland collection from Iredell County, North Carolina, presumably represents an introduction. There are two geographically separated morphological forms of O. humifusa. Plants of one form are somewhat decumbent, with subentire cauline leaves and bracts; this form occurs in the southern part of the range. The other form is more upright, with more deeply divided leaves; it occurs from North Carolina northward.

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

Oenothera argillicola is one of eight angiosperm species restricted to the Devonian Brallier shale barrens, but among them only O. argillicola and Trifolium virginicum occur throughout the shale barren region. Oenothera argillicola has plastome V and a CC genome composition.

(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. Oenothera > subsect. Raimannia Onagraceae > subfam. Onagroideae > tribe Onagreae > Oenothera > sect. Oenothera > subsect. Oenothera
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. howardii, 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. 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. 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 O. niveifolia, O. sinuata var. humifusa, Raimannia humifusa O. argillicola var. pubescens
Name authority Nuttall: Gen. N. Amer. Pl. 1: 245. (1818) Mackenzie: Torreya 4: 56. (1904)
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