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cave evening-primrose, cavedwelling evening primrose

Habit Herbs annual, villous proximally, glabrate, strigillose and/or glandular puberulent distally, leaves glabrate to densely villous, glabrate in age; from stout taproot. Herbs winter or spring annual, acaulescent or short-caulescent, glandular puberulent, sometimes also sparsely hirsute; from a taproot.
Stems

ascending to erect, unbranched or well-branched at base and distally, 15–100 cm.

(when present) 1–several, ascending, usually unbranched, 2–4 cm.

Leaves

in a basal rosette and cauline, basal 3–15 × 0.5–1 cm, blade lyrate;

cauline 1–9 × 0.1–0.8 cm, blade linear to very narrowly elliptic or narrowly lanceolate, margins sinuate-dentate to subentire.

primarily in a basal rosette, sometimes also cauline, (0.5–)2.5–13(–19.5) × (0.2–)0.6–2.3(–2.7) cm;

petiole 0.5–5.2 cm;

blade oblanceolate to elliptic-oblanceolate (in some exceptionally large leaves), margins lyrate-pinnatifid to subentire (in very small ones), apex usually rounded, rarely acute.

Flowers

4-merous, zygomorphic, opening at sunset;

floral tube 6–10 mm;

sepals 6–12 mm;

petals white, fading pink to red, narrowly obovate, 5.5–9.5 mm, short-clawed;

filaments 4–6 mm, anthers 2–3 mm, pollen 90–100% fertile;

style 11–19 mm, stigma surrounded by anthers at anthesis.

1–3(–10) per stem opening per day near sunset, without noticeable scent;

buds sometimes ± recurved before anthesis;

floral tube (20–)30–37(–47) mm;

sepals 4.5–12 mm;

petals white, fading pale pink, (6.5–)8–20(–25) mm;

filaments 5.2–7.5(–12) mm, anthers (1.4–)3–4.5(–6) mm;

style (24–)35–45(–56) mm, stigma surrounded by anthers at anthesis.

Capsules

ellipsoid or narrowly obovoid, narrowly 4-winged, furrowed between wings, 6–8 × 2–3 mm, narrowed at base, stipe 0 mm;

sessile.

falcate (especially before maturity), ellipsoid-ovoid to ovoid, obtusely 4-angled, 12–38 × 6–14 mm, tapering to a sterile beak 2–8 mm, dehiscent to 1/2 their length, valve margins with a sinuate ridge or 8–20 nearly distinct tubercles;

pedicel 0–10 mm.

Seeds

4, yellowish to reddish brown, 2–3 × 1–1.5 mm.

usually numerous, sometimes as few as 5, in 2 adjacent rows per locule, obovoid, 2.5–3.1 × 1.1–1.4 mm, embryo 1/2 of seed volume, surface minutely papillose to reticulate;

seed collar without membrane, producing a large empty cavity, margin irregularly sinuate.

2n

= 14.

= 14.

Oenothera podocarpa

Oenothera cavernae

Phenology Flowering (May–)Jun–Oct. Flowering Mar–May.
Habitat Disturbed sites, sandy washes, slopes, grasslands, meadows, pinyon-juniper or ponderosa pine woodlands, on volcanic cinders. Exposed calcareous slopes, crevices in limestone, dolomite, or loose talus, sandy arroyos, sandstone, granitic crevices, volcanic cinders in Mojave Desert or Great Basin scrub communities, rarely in arid juniper woodlands.
Elevation 700–2800 m. (2300–9200 ft.) 400–1700 m. (1300–5600 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
AZ; NM; Mexico (Chihuahua, Durango, Sonora)
from FNA
AZ; CA; NV
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Oenothera podocarpa occurs in Arizona from eastern Mohave County south through the mountains of central Arizona to eastern Pima County and the southwestern quarter of New Mexico, and in Mexico southward in the Sierra Madre Occidental to eastern Sonora and throughout the western halves of Chihuahua and Durango. P. H. Raven and D. P. Gregory (1972[1973]) determined O. podocarpa to be self-compatible and primarily autogamous.

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

Oenothera cavernae is known from the Arrow Canyon, Las Vegas, and Sheep ranges and the low hills near Arden and Sloan in Clark County, Nevada, eastward along the Grand Canyon to the vicinity of Page, Arizona, and perhaps Washington County, Utah and formerly in Glenn Canyon, and more recently collected in eastern San Bernardino County, California (eastern Clark Mountain Range, and the base of range in Ivanpah Valley). W. L. Wagner et al. (1985) determined O. cavernae to be self-compatible and autogamous.

(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. Gaura > subsect. Gaura Onagraceae > subfam. Onagroideae > tribe Onagreae > Oenothera > sect. Pachylophus
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. 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. 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. 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 Gaura podocarpa, G. brassicacea, G. glandulosa, G. gracilis, G. hexandra subsp. gracilis, G. strigillosa, O. hexandra subsp. gracilis
Name authority (Wooton & Standley) Krakos & W. L. Wagner: PhytoKeys 28: 68. (2013) Munz: Leafl. W. Bot. 3: 50. (1941)
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