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linda tarde, scarlet beeblossom, scarlet evening-primrose, scarlet gaura, wild honeysuckle

Nuttall's evening primrose

Habit Herbs perennial, densely strigillose, sometimes also long-villous proximally, sometimes glabrate; from a deep, thick taproot, often with branching underground stems, or branching only at surface, these often becoming horizontal or nearly so and giving rise to new plants. Herbs perennial, mostly glabrous, sometimes strigillose on leaves and/or glandular puberulent on distal parts, at least on floral tube; from a taproot, lateral roots producing adventitious shoots.
Stems

erect or ascending, usually many-branched, 10–120 cm.

erect, often branched, 30–100 cm.

Leaves

in a basal rosette (but not present at flowering) and cauline, 0.7–6.5 × 0.1–1.5 cm, blade linear to narrowly elliptic, margins entire or remotely and coarsely serrate.

in a basal rosette and cauline, rosette weakly developed or absent, at least during flowering, 2–6(–10.5) × 0.3–0.6(–1) cm;

petiole 0–2 cm;

blade narrowly oblong to oblong-lanceolate, margins usually entire, sometimes remotely denticulate or repand-denticulate.

Flowers

4-merous, zygomorphic, opening near sunset;

floral tube 4–11(–13) mm;

sepals 5–9(–10) mm;

petals white, fading salmon pink to scarlet-red, slightly unequal, obovate to elliptic-obovate or elliptic, 3–7(–8) mm, abruptly clawed;

filaments 3–6.5(–7) mm, anthers (2.5–)3–5(–5.5) mm;

style 10–22 mm, stigma exserted beyond anthers at anthesis.

1–several opening per day near sunset;

buds nodding, weakly quadrangular, with free tips 1–2 mm;

floral tube 15–40 mm;

sepals 20–30 mm, not spotted;

petals white, fading pink, broadly obovate or obcordate,15–30 mm;

filaments 15–18 mm, anthers 8–10 mm;

style 35–45 mm, stigma exserted beyond anthers at anthesis.

Capsules

erect, pyramidal in distal 1/2 and abruptly constricted to terete proximal part, pyramidal part weakly or strongly angled, not conspicuously bulging at base, 4–9 × (1–)1.5–3 mm;

sessile.

erect or ascending, woody in age, straight or slightly curved, cylindrical, obtusely 4-angled, especially toward base, tapering slightly from base to apex, 20–30 × 2–3 mm;

sessile.

Seeds

(1–)3 or 4, light to reddish brown, 1.5–3 × 1–1.5 mm.

numerous, in 1 row per locule, reddish dark brown, narrowly obovoid, 1.5–2.3 mm.

2n

= 14, 28, 42, 56.

= 14, 28.

Oenothera suffrutescens

Oenothera nuttallii

Phenology Flowering Apr–Aug(–Nov). Flowering Jun–Sep.
Habitat Sandy or clay soil, often calcareous, desert shrublands to pinyon-juniper or oak woodlands, grasslands, disturbed areas. Dry, sandy or rocky prairies, open wooded hillsides, disturbed areas, roadsides.
Elevation 150–2000(–3000) m. (500–6600(–9800) ft.) 500–2200(–2900) m. (1600–7200(–9500) ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
AZ; CA; CO; IA; IL; IN; KS; MI; MN; MO; MT; ND; NE; NM; NV; NY; OK; SD; TX; UT; WI; WY; AB; BC; MB; ON; SK; Mexico (Aguascalientes, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Durango, Guanajuato, Hidalgo, Jalisco, México, Nuevo León, Oaxaca, Puebla, San Luis Potosí, Sonora, Tamaulipas, Veracruz, Zacatecas); intro­duced in South America (Brazil); Europe (Wales)
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CO; IL; MI; MN; MT; ND; NE; SD; WI; WY; AB; MB; SK
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Oenothera suffrutescens is naturalized sporadically in southern California (Los Angeles, San Diego, Santa Barbara, and Ventura counties; although native in eastern part of the state), Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, New York, southern Ontario, and Wisconsin.

P. H. Raven and D. P. Gregory (1972[1973]) determined Oenothera suffrutescens to be self-incompatible and polyploid. It is known to form hybrids with O. calcicola and O. hispida.

Schizocarya kunthii Spach is an illegitimate name based on Gaura epilobioides that pertains here.

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

Oenothera nuttallii had been assumed to be self-incompatible (W. L. Wagner et al. 2007), but K. E. Theiss et al. (2010) determined two plants to be self-compatible.

Anogra nuttalliana Spach and Baumannia nuttalliana Spach are illegitimate names that pertain here.

(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. Campogaura Onagraceae > subfam. Onagroideae > tribe Onagreae > Oenothera > sect. Anogra
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. 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. 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. macrocarpa, O. mckelveyae, O. mexicana, O. nealleyi, O. neomexicana, O. nutans, 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 suffrutescens, G. bracteata, G. coccinea, G. coccinea var. arizonica, G. coccinea var. epilobioides, G. coccinea var. glabra, G. coccinea var. integerrima, G. coccinea var. parvifolia, G. epilobioides, G. glabra, G. induta, G. linearis, G. marginata, G. multicaulis, G. odorata, G. parvifolia, G. spicata O. albicaulis, O. albicaulis var. nuttallii
Name authority (Seringe) W. L. Wagner & Hoch: Syst. Bot. Monogr. 83: 214. (2007) Sweet: Hort. Brit. ed. 2, 199. (1830)
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