About Oenothera L.
This species of Oenothera is an annual or short-lived perennial herb. It grows a spreading stem from a hairy rosette of deeply cut or lobed leaves. Flowers develop in the axils of leaves located higher on the stem. Each flower has petals that range from pale to deep yellow, reaching up to around 2 centimeters long, and these petals fade to orange, pink, or red as they age. The fruit is a cylindrical capsule that can grow up to 5 centimeters in length. For Oenothera laciniata specifically, leaves vary in shape from oblanceolate to elliptic, and may be irregularly lobed or pinnatifid. O. laciniata has a native range extending from Maine to North Dakota, stretching south to Florida and Texas, with additional reported populations in California. On the coastal plain of the southeastern United States, this species occurs in pine flatwoods, pine savannas, and shrub bogs.