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seabeach evening-primrose

evening primrose, Hooker's evening-primrose, western 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, densely strigillose and either sparsely or moderately villous, with appressed or spreading hairs (sometimes with red-pustulate bases), distally sometimes also glandular puberulent.
Stems

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

erect, green, flushed with red proximally or red throughout, unbranched or branches obliquely arising from rosette and secondary branches arising from main stem, 30–250 cm.

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 10–43 × 1.2–4(–6) cm, cauline 4–25 × 1–2.5(–4) cm;

blade dull green to grayish green, rarely red, narrowly oblanceolate or oblanceolate to narrowly elliptic or narrowly lanceolate, margins usually flat, rarely undulate, bluntly dentate or subentire, teeth sometimes widely spaced, proximal blades sometimes sinuate-dentate toward base;

bracts persistent.

Inflorescences

erect, 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, 6–10 mm diam., with free tips terminal, erect, 1–7 mm;

floral tube (20–)30–45(–50) mm;

sepals yellowish green, red-striped or strongly flushed with red, 27–50 mm;

petals yellow to pale yellow, fading orange or pale yellow, very broadly obcordate, (25–)30–47(–55) mm;

filaments 17–25 mm, anthers 8–23 mm, pollen 90–100% fertile;

style 50–90 mm, stigma exserted beyond anthers at anthesis.

Capsules

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

erect or slightly spreading, dull green or gray-green when dry, narrowly lanceoloid, 20–65 × 4–7 mm, free tips of valves 0.5–2.5 mm.

Seeds

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

1–1.9 × 0.6–1.2 mm.

2n

= 14.

Oenothera humifusa

Oenothera elata

Phenology Flowering Apr–Nov.
Habitat Dunes, open sandy places along or near Atlantic coast.
Elevation 0–10 m. (0–0 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 USDA
w United States; c United States; Mexico; Central America
[WildflowerSearch map]
[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.)

Subspecies 3 (2 in the flora).

Subspecies elata differs in anthers 7–12 mm, fewer or no pustulate-based hairs, and generally smaller flowers and habit. It ranges from the highlands of central Mexico, including Guanajuato, Hidalgo, México, Michoacán, Puebla, Querétaro, and Veracruz, south to Guatemala, El Salvador, Costa Rica, and Panama.

Oenothera elata has plastome I and a AA genome composition. Onagra kunthiana Spach is a superfluous name that pertains here.

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

Key
1. Plants strigillose, usually also villous, with appressed or spreading hairs, sometimes these with red-pustulate bases, distally sometimes also glandular puberulent; buds green to yellowish green, red-striped, or sometimes red throughout; anthers 8–15(–20) mm.
subsp. hirsutissima
1. Plants strigillose, also villous with appressed or spreading hairs, usually these with conspicuous red-pustulate bases, also glandular puberulent; buds flushed with red; anthers 12–23 mm.
subsp. hookeri
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. 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. 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
Subordinate taxa
O. elata subsp. hirsutissima, O. elata subsp. hookeri
Synonyms O. niveifolia, O. sinuata var. humifusa, Raimannia humifusa
Name authority Nuttall: Gen. N. Amer. Pl. 1: 245. (1818) Kunth in A. von Humboldt et al.: Nov. Gen. Sp. 6(fol.): 72; 6(qto.): 90. (1823)
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