Duration: Annual

Nativity: Native

Lifeform: Forb/Herb

General: Annual to biennial herb, 20-100 cm tall, from a stout taproot; stems ascending, well branched, hirsute on the lower portions.

Leaves: In a basal cluster and alternate along the stems; blades oblanceolate (basal) to linear (upper stem leaves), 1-15 cm long and 1-25 mm wide, tapering at the base into a winged petiole; leaf margins smooth to sinuate-dentate (lined with wavy or rounded teeth).

Flowers: Showy, pinkish and slightly asymmetrical; arranged in terminal racemes; hypanthium (base of flower containing the ovary) well developed, 6-14 mm long; sepals 4, reflexed (pointed downward) at full flower, 8-20 mm long; petals 4, oblanceolate and clawed (strongly tapered at the base), 10-15 mm long, white to pinkish and fading red.

Fruits: Capsules woody, ovoid-pyramidal, 4-9 mm long and 2-5 mm wide, abruptly narrowed at the base; not splitting open to release to the smooth ovoid seeds within.

Ecology: Found in open sandy, sometimes weedy habitats, from 4,000-7,000 ft (1219-2134 m); flowers April-September.

Distribution: TX, OK, NM; south to n MEX.

Notes: Look for this species under Gaura suffulta in older texts; the entire genus Gaura was recently lumped into Oenothera based on molecular evidence. O. suffulta is distinguished from other species traditionally placed in Gaura based on its slightly larger flowers, with the hypanthium (tapering base of the flower below the sepals and petals, which looks a bit like a flower stalk) at least 8 mm long; and sepals at least 8 mm long; also the seed pos is tapered at the base into a short stout stipe (stalk) 1-2 mm long (G. villosa fruits have a longer stalk, 3-6 mm long); and the fruits are hairless or only slightly puberulent. There are two subspecies: subsp. suffulta is found in Texas and Oklahoma and has glabrous flower parts. Subsp. nealleyi is found in New Mexico and west Texas, and has gland-tipped hairs on the flower parts (especially the sepals and hypanthium) and inflorescence.

Ethnobotany: Unknown

Etymology: Oenothera comes from the Greek oinos, wine, and therao, to seek or imbibe, alluding to the fact that the root of Oenothera biennis was used to flavor wine; suffulta is Latin for supported or propped up, alluding to the plant's ascending growth form.

Synonyms: Gaura suffulta

Editor: AHazelton 2017