Common eveningprimrose – Oenothera biennis
Oenothera biennis L.
Onagraceae (Eveningprimrose family)
MI Status
Native
Life cycle
Usually an erect biennial or winter annual. Occasionally a summer annual.
Leaves
Alternate, narrow oval-shaped, smooth to slightly wavy leaf margins, with distinctive pink to white midveins. Leaves initially develop from a basal rosette.
Stems
Erect, semiwoody, approaching 5 feet in height. Stem usually branches only at the top and may be visible through the winter.
Flowers and fruit
Flowers are yellow, attached to fused sepals forming a tube and found in terminal spikes. Seed capsules are woody, cylinder-shaped and thickest near the bottom.
Reproduction
Seeds.
Similar weeds
Cutleaf eveningprimrose (O. laciniata Hill)
Differs by having a prostrate to moderately erect, branching stem; wavy and coarsely toothed leaves; yellow to reddish flowers in the upper and middle leaf axils; and linear, cylinder-shaped seed capsules.



Other Documents in this Series
You Might Also Be Interested In
-
The Michigan Farm to Institution Network's Framework for 2022 and Beyond
Published on October 11, 2022
-
Equity and collaboration for resilient local food systems across the U.S.
Published on December 30, 2020
-
Student-led bird banding innovation spearheads continuation of data collection despite COVID-19
Published on March 16, 2021
-
Creating innovative models to assess spread, possible management of deadly chronic wasting disease
Published on February 1, 2021
-
Improving the health of Michigan’s fishes
Published on February 1, 2021
-
New trail makes nature more accessible at the MSU Corey Marsh Ecological Research Center
Published on August 25, 2021
Accessibility Questions:
For questions about accessibility and/or if you need additional accommodations for a specific document, please send an email to ANR Communications & Marketing at anrcommunications@anr.msu.edu.