''Oenothera caespitosa'', known commonly as tufted evening primrose, desert evening primrose, rock-rose evening primrose, or fragrant evening primrose, is a

perennial plant A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...

of the genus ''

Oenothera ''Oenothera'' is a genus of about 145 species of herbaceous flowering plants native to the Americas. It is the type genus of the family Onagraceae. Common names include evening primrose, suncups, and sundrops. They are not closely related to ...

'' native to much of western and central North America, in habitats such as talus slopes and sandy plains. It is normally night-blooming. The plant is considered good for rock gardens. There are many subtaxa, referred to as subspecies or varieties.

Description

''Oenothera caespitosa'' grows to 10 centimeters (4 inches) tall. It produces a rosette of lobed or toothed leaves each up to long around a woody

caudex A caudex (plural: caudices) of a plant is a stem, but the term is also used to mean a rootstock and particularly a basal stem structure from which new growth arises.pages 456 and 695 In the strict sense of the term, meaning a stem, "caudex" is m ...

. It has no stems, with flowers and leaves growing directly from the

root crown A root crown, also known as the root collar or root neck, is that part of a root system from which a stem arises. Since roots and stems have quite different vascular The blood vessels are the components of the circulatory system that transport ...

. The four-petaled white flowers open at dusk and wilt the next morning, turning pink."Botanica. The Illustrated AZ of over 10000 garden plants and how to cultivate them", p. 612. Könemann, 2004. The petals measure up to in width and length. A notch gives them a heart shape.

Ecology

The plant is a larval host to the

white-lined sphinx moth ''Hyles lineata'', also known as the white-lined sphinx, is a moth of the family Sphingidae. They are sometimes known as the hummingbird moth because of their bird-like size (2-3 inch wingspan) and flight patterns. As caterpillars, they have a ...

. ''Oenothera caespitosa'' is dependent on hawkmoths, including the five-spotted hawkmoth (''

Manduca quinquemaculata ''Manduca quinquemaculata'', the five-spotted hawkmoth, is a brown and gray hawk moth of the family Sphingidae. The caterpillar, often referred to as the tomato hornworm, can be a major pest in gardens; they get their name from a dark projectio ...

'') for pollination.

Similar species

Oenothera deltoides ''Oenothera deltoides'' is a species of evening primrose known by several common names, including birdcage evening primrose, basket evening primrose, lion in a cage, and devil's lantern. It is native to the Southwestern United States and norther ...

'' is very similar, with short stems and slightly smaller flowers.

References

External links

Jepson Manual TreatmentCalPhoto gallery
caespitosa Night-blooming plants Flora of North America {{Myrtales-stub