Flora of North America species comparison

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Oenothera laciniata

Oenothera macrocarpa

cut-leaf evening-primrose, southern evening primrose

bigfruit evening primrose, Missouri evening primrose, Ozark sundrop
Habit Herbs annual, sparsely to moderately strigillose, sometimes also villous, sometimes also becoming glandular puberulent distally. Herbs caulescent, strigillose or glabrous, sometimes glandular puberulent distally; from a stout taproot, sometimes lateral roots producing adventitious shoots.
Stems

erect to ascending, unbranched to much branched, 5–50 cm.

moderately leafy, (1–)4–40(–60) cm.
Leaves

in a basal rosette and cauline, basal 4–15 × 1–3 cm, cauline 2–10 × 0.5–3.5 cm;

blade green, narrowly oblanceolate to narrowly elliptic or narrowly oblong, margins usually dentate or deeply lobed;

bracts spreading, flat.

cauline, (2.8–)3.7–12.5(–17) × (0.1–)0.4–3(–4.5) cm;

petiole (0.4–)1–4(–6) cm;

blade linear, lanceolate-elliptic, elliptic to oblanceolate or suborbiculate, margins entire or conspicuously or inconspicuously denticulate or serrulate, sometimes undulate, apex usually acute, sometimes obtuse or retuse (subsp. incana).
Flowers

usually 1 opening per day near sunset;

buds erect, with free tips erect, 0.3–3 mm;

floral tube 12–35 mm;

sepals 5–15 mm;

petals yellow, fading orange or reddish tinged, broadly obovate or obcordate, 5–22 mm;

filaments 3–14 mm, anthers 4–5 mm, pollen ca. 50% fertile;

style 20–50 mm, stigma surrounded by anthers at anthesis.

usually 1 or 2, rarely more, opening per day near sunset, fading next morning, sometimes (subspp.
Capsules

cylindrical, sometimes slightly enlarged toward apex, 20–50 × 2–4 mm.

papery in age, narrowly ellipsoid to lanceoloid, sometimes twisted (subsp. fremontii), winged, wings (2–)10–28(–34) mm wide, body (13–)25–70(–115) × 2–9 mm, dehiscent 1/4–1/3 their length;

pedicel 1–12(–25) mm.
Seeds

ellipsoid to subglobose, 0.9–1.8 × 0.4–0.9 mm.

numerous, rarely as few as 8, in 1 row per locule, obovoid, (2–)3–5 × 1–2.3 mm.
Macrocarpa

and oklahomensis) lasting for 2 days, weakly scented;

buds with unequal free tips 1–11(–15) mm;

floral tube (21–)35–140(–160) mm;

sepals (20–)25–65(–75) mm;

petals bright yellow, fading orange, reddish orange or mostly unchanged, obovate to very broadly obovate, (17–)25–65(–68) mm, usually with terminal notch and/or tooth, margin sometimes erose;

filaments 13–40(–44) mm, anthers 10–24(–25) mm;

style (45–)55–192 mm, stigma usually exserted beyond anthers at anthesis.
2n

= 14.

Oenothera laciniata

Oenothera macrocarpa
Phenology Flowering (Feb–)Apr–Sep(–Oct).
Habitat introduced nearly worldwide in temperate and subtropical areas..
Elevation 0–1000(–1300) m. (0–3300(–4300) ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
AL; AR; CA; CT; DC; DE; FL; GA; IA; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MA; MD; ME; MI; MN; MO; MS; NC; ND; NE; NJ; NM; NY; OH; OK; PA; RI; SC; SD; TN; TX; VA; VT; WI; WV; WY [Introduced nearly worldwide in temperate and subtropical areas]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from USDA
c United States; n Mexico; s United States
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Oenothera laciniata is a PTH species and forms aring of 14 chromosomes in meiosis, and is self-compatible and autogamous (W. Dietrich and W. L. Wagner 1988).

Oenothera laciniata is known in New Mexico from Doña Ana and Roosevelt counties from non-montane habitats and thus do not appear to represent O. pubescens; however, a few collections from Brewster and Jeff Davis counties, Texas, reported by W. Dietrich and W. L. Wagner (1988) as O. laciniata appear to represent collections of O. pubescens. Dietrich and Wagner found that O. laciniata hybridizes not only with O. grandis, but also with O. drummondii subsp. drummondii, O. humifusa, and O. mexicana. It is naturalized nearly worldwide in temperate and subtropical areas.

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

Subspecies 5 (4 in the flora).

Oenotheramacrocarpa is variable and has differentiated extensively in the Great Plains region. Each of the five distinctive subspecies occupies a different geographical and ecological situation. Only subsp. mexicana W. L. Wagner from Coahuila, Mexico, occurs outside of the flora area. In general, the subspecies are sharply distinct and each is characterized by a number of features, including pubescence, leaf features, flower and floral tube size, and size and morphology of the capsules and seeds. The five entities are treated as subspecies primarily because of their complete interfertility and extensive intergradation in any area of marginal contact. Intermediates are known between subsp. macrocarpa and subspp. fremontii and oklahomensis and between subspp. incana and oklahomensis. There is also some evidence that suggests past hybridization between subspp. fremontii and incana although there is no present contact between them. All subspecies are self-incompatible.

Oenothera alata Nuttall (1818) is an illegitimate name based on O. macrocarpa and pertains here.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Key
1. Herbs glabrous.
→ 2
2. Leaf blades usually very broadly elliptic to suborbiculate, rarely oblanceolate or elliptic, 2–4.3 cm wide, margins usually entire, sometimes inconspicuously denticulate, usually flat, sometimes undulate.
subsp. incana
2. Leaf blades usually elliptic to lanceolate-elliptic, sometimes linear, (0.3–)0.8–2(–3) cm wide, margins usually conspicuously denticulate to serrulate, rarely subentire, usually undulate.
subsp. oklahomensis
1. Herbs strigillose.
→ 3
3. Bud free tips 1–2(–5) mm; petals (17–)25–33(–37) mm; floral tubes (21–)35–65(–80) mm; capsules often twisted, 13–30(–65) mm, wings 2–5(–9) mm wide.
subsp. fremontii
3. Bud free tips (4–)5–11(–12) mm; petals (25–)31–65(–68) mm; floral tubes (50–)70–140(–160) mm; capsules not twisted, (28–)30–70(–115) mm, wings 10–28(–34) mm wide.
→ 4
4. Leaves green or younger ones grayish green, moderately strigillose, rarely more densely strigillose, blades often lanceolate-elliptic to broadly elliptic, sometimes linear or lanceolate, 0.4–2.3(–3) cm wide; capsule wings (14–)18–28(–34) mm wide.
subsp. macrocarpa
4. Leaves gray, densely strigillose, blades very broadly elliptic to suborbiculate, rarely oblanceolate or elliptic, 2–4.3 cm wide; capsule wings 10–15(–24) mm wide.
subsp. incana
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. Megapterium
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. humifusa, O. jamesii, O. kunthiana, 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. 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. macrocarpa subsp. fremontii, O. macrocarpa subsp. incana, O. macrocarpa subsp. macrocarpa, O. macrocarpa subsp. oklahomensis
Synonyms O. minima, O. repanda, O. sinuata, O. sinuata var. minima, Onagra sinuata, Raimannia laciniata Megapterium macrocarpum, M. nuttallianum
Name authority Hill: Veg. Syst. 12(app.): 64, plate 10. (1767) Nuttall: Cat. Pl. Upper Louisiana, no. 56. (1813)
Web links 
Unless otherwise noted, all data comes from the online version of the Flora of North America, who have made most of their content available via a Creative Commons license (CC BY 4.0).



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