WILDFLOWERS OF THE MIDWEST by DON KURZ

WILDFLOWERS OF THE MIDWEST by DON KURZ

Author:DON KURZ
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: FALCONGUIDES
Published: 2020-08-25T00:00:00+00:00


COMMON EVENING PRIMROSE

Oenothera biennis

Evening primrose family (Onagraceae)

Description: A biennial with a stout, sometimes hairy stem tinged with red, as are parts of the older leaves, up to 7' tall. The basal leaves are stalked, 4–12" long and 1–2" wide, and irregularly toothed along the margins. The stem leaves are alternate, lance-shaped, pointed at the tip, hairy on both sides, toothed along the margins, and up to 6" long and 2" wide. The flowers are numerous along a long column that opens to 2½" across. The 4 yellow petals have a shallow notch at the end. There are 8 yellow stamens.

Bloom Season: Summer–fall

Habitat/Range: Common to abundant in disturbed areas in prairies, at the edges of woods, along streams, pastures, fields, and along roadsides; found throughout the Midwest region.

Comments: The flowers open in the evening and close by mid-morning on sunny days. The flowers emit a creosote smell that particularly attracts night-flying sphinx moths. Native Americans ate the seeds and the first-year roots (the second-year roots are too woody). After this plant was introduced to Europe from North America in the early 1600s, Europeans ate its roots and put the young shoots into salads. The entire plant was prepared and used to treat whooping cough, hiccups, and asthma. A closely related species, northern evening primrose (Oenothera parviflora), differs by having gland-tipped hairs along the stem, flowers ¾–1½" across, and flower spikes nodding at the top; found in the northern half of the Midwest region.



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