Oenothera patriciae
Syst. Bot. Monogr. 83: 213. 2007.
Illustrator:
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Herbs annual, villous proximally, sparsely villous along leaf veins and on margins, usually glabrate or, sometimes, strigillose distally; from taproot. Stems usually well-branched from base and distally, rarely unbranched, 15–65 (–85) cm. Leaves in a basal rosette and cauline, basal 6–9.5 × 1–2 cm, blade lyrate; cauline 1–7 × 0.1–2.3 cm, blade narrowly lanceolate to oblanceolate, margins shallowly sinuate-denticulate to subentire. Flowers (3-merous or) 4-merous, zygomorphic, opening at sunset; floral-tube 6–12 mm; sepals 10–15 mm; petals white, fading pink to purple, elliptic-obovate, 8–13 mm; filaments 5–8 mm, anthers 2–4 mm, pollen 90–100% fertile; style 15–24 mm, stigma exserted beyond anthers at anthesis. Capsules ellipsoid, narrowly (3-winged or) 4-winged, deeply furrowed between wings, 6–10 × 2–3 mm, with or without prominent lower corners, narrowed to a stipe 0–1 mm; sessile. Seeds 3 or 4, yellowish to reddish-brown, 2–3 × 1–1.5 mm. 2n = 14.
Phenology: Flowering Feb–Jun.
Habitat: Open, sandy sites.
Elevation: 0–300 m.
Distribution
La., Miss., Okla., Tex.
Discussion
Oenothera patriciae is known from Acadia Parish, Louisiana, Amite County, Mississippi, Bryan and Love counties, Oklahoma, and eastern Texas.
Reports of Oenothera patriciae near Tulsa, Oklahoma, and at the single locations in Arkansas and Mississippi may represent introductions. P. H. Raven and D. P. Gregory (1972[1973]) determined O. patriciae to be self-compatible, but primarily outcrossing.
Selected References
None.