Oenothera elata
| Oenothera elata | |
|---|---|
 | |
| ssp. hookeri | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Eudicots |
| (unranked): | Rosids |
| Order: | Myrtales |
| Family: | Onagraceae |
| Genus: | Oenothera |
| Species: | O. elata |
| Binomial name | |
| Oenothera elata Kunth | |
Oenothera elata is a species of Oenothera known by the common name Hooker's evening primrose or tall evening primrose. Subspecies include hookeri, hirsutissima, longisima, jamesii, villosa and elata.[1] It is native to much of western and central North America. The plants are quite tall, especially the hookeri subspecies, native to California, which can reach about 1.8 meters (6 feet) height.[2] The plants are found along roadsides, in moist meadows, or woodland, from sea level up to 9,000 ft (2,700 m) in elevation.[3]
Description
The stout, usually reddish stem has many long, narrow leaves, above a basal rosette. At its top is a large, open cluster of 2- to 4-inch wide yellow flowers with 4 large petals and protruding yellow stamens and 4-branched pistil, often covered in sticky pollen. The fragrant flowers open at dusk and wilt the next morning, turning orange or red.[3]
Uses
The Zuni people apply a poultice of the powdered flower of the hookeri subspecies and saliva at night to swellings.[4]
Gallery
Oenothera elata (Hooker's evening primrose), Irvine CA
Oenothera elata flowers, Eastern Sierra, CA
E. elata var hookeri, Water Conservation Garden, El Cajon CA
References
- ↑ Oenothera elata on the United States Department of Agriculture
- ↑ "Botanica. The Illustrated AZ of over 10000 garden plants and how to cultivate them", p. 612. Könemann, 2004. ISBN 3-8331-1253-0
- 1 2 Laird R. Blackwell (2002). Wildflowers of the Eastern Sierra and Adjoining Mojave Desert and Great Basin. Lone Pine Publishing. ISBN 978-1-55105-281-6.
- ↑ Camazine, Scott; Bye, Robert A. (1980). "A Study Of The Medical Ethnobotany Of The Zuni Indians of New Mexico". Journal of Ethnopharmacology. 2: 365–388 [377]. doi:10.1016/s0378-8741(80)81017-8.
Further reading
Raven, Peter; Dietrich, Werner; Stubbe, Wilfried (Autumn 1979). "An Outline of the Systematics of Oenothera Subsect. Euoenothera (Onagraceae)". Systematic Botany. 4 (3): 242–252. doi:10.2307/2418422. JSTOR 2418422.
Dietrich, Werner; L. Wagner, Warren (1987). "A New Combination and New Subspecies in Oenothera Elata Kunth (Onagraceae)". Missouri Botanical Garden Press. 74 (1): 151–152. doi:10.2307/2399273. JSTOR 2399273.