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Colorado beeblossom

Habit Herbs annual, villous proximally, glabrate, strigillose and/or glandular puberulent distally, leaves glabrate to densely villous, glabrate in age; from stout taproot. Herbs monocarpic perennial, strigillose proximally, short-hirtellous and strigillose distally, leaves sometimes glabrate; from stout, fleshy taproot.
Stems

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

1–few-branched from base, 50–80(–100) 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.

in a basal rosette and cauline, basal 4–18 × 1.5–4 cm, blade very narrowly elliptic, lanceolate, or oblanceolate;

cauline 5–13 × 1–4 cm, blade narrowly elliptic, narrowly lanceolate, or narrowly oblanceolate, margins subentire or repand-denticulate.

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.

4-merous, zygomorphic, opening at sunset;

floral tube 8–12 mm;

sepals 9.5–13 mm;

petals white, fading pink, rhombic-obovate, 7–12 mm;

filaments 6.5–9 mm, anthers 2.5–4 mm, pollen 90–100% fertile;

style 19–25 mm, stigma exserted beyond 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.

ellipsoid or ovoid, sharply 4-angled, with fairly deep furrows alternating with angles, 6–8.5 × 2–3 mm;

sessile.

Seeds

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

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

2n

= 14.

= 14.

Oenothera podocarpa

Oenothera coloradensis

Phenology Flowering (May–)Jun–Oct. Flowering Jul–Sep.
Habitat Disturbed sites, sandy washes, slopes, grasslands, meadows, pinyon-juniper or ponderosa pine woodlands, on volcanic cinders. In wet meadow vegetation of North and South Platte River watersheds on high plains, sloping floodplains, drainage basins in heavy soil.
Elevation 700–2800 m. (2300–9200 ft.) 1500–2000 m. (4900–6600 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
AZ; NM; Mexico (Chihuahua, Durango, Sonora)
from FNA
CO; NE; WY
[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 coloradensis is currently known from fewer than two dozen populations from southern Laramie and Platte counties in Wyoming, northern Weld County, Colorado, formerly near Fort Collins, Larimer County, Colorado, and in western Kimball County, Nebraska. It is federally listed as a threatened species in the United States. The primary threats are agricultural use of habitat, herbicide spraying to control weed species, and livestock trampling and grazing (see W. L. Wagner et al. 2013). Recent study by K. N. Krakos (unpubl.) has determined this species to be self-compatible. P. H. Raven and D. P. Gregory (1972[1973]) described this species as glandular puberulent in inflorescence, which was repeated in the recent revised taxonomy (Wagner et al.); however, examination of specimens show that P. A. Munz (1965) was correct in describing the pubescence of the inflorescence as non-glandular.

(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. Gaura > subsect. Gaura
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. cavernae, O. cespitosa, O. cinerea, O. clelandii, 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 Gaura coloradensis, G. neomexicana subsp. coloradensis, G. neomexicana var. coloradensis
Name authority (Wooton & Standley) Krakos & W. L. Wagner: PhytoKeys 28: 68. (2013) (Rydberg) W. L. Wagner & Hoch: Syst. Bot. Monogr. 83: 211. (2007)
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