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California Primrose
Oenothera californica
  
About California Primrose (Oenothera californica) 6 Nurseries Carry This Plant Oenothera californica is a species of flowering plant in the Onagraceae (Evening Primrose) family known by the common name California Primrose. It is native to parts of the southwestern United States and Baja California, where it can be found in chaparral, higher elevation deserts and woodlands. It is a perennial herb producing a spreading or upright stem up to 80 centimeters long. Young plants have a basal rosette of leaves, while older ones have leaves along the stem, lance-shaped to nearly oval in shape and up to 6 centimeters long. Flowers occur in the upper leaf axils, drooping in bud and becoming erect as they bloom. The four petals are white, fading pink, and may exceed 3 centimeters long. There are three subspecies of this plant, one of which, the rare Eureka Dunes evening primrose (ssp. eurekensis), is a federally listed endangered species. It is sometimes listed as its synonym, Oenothera avita ssp. eurekensis. This subspecies is known from only a few occurrences in the Eureka Valley Sand Dunes in Inyo County, where it grows alongside another dune endemic, the endangered Eureka Valley dune grass (Swallenia alexandrae). The other two subspecies are common.
Plant Description
Plant Type
Plant Type
Perennial herb

Size
Size
0.33 - 2.6 ft tall
10 ft wide

Form
Form
Spreading

Dormancy
Dormancy
Summer Semi-Deciduous

Fragrance
Fragrance
Fragrant - Pleasant

Flower Color
Flower Color
White, Pink

Flowering Season
Flowering Season
Spring

Wildlife Supported
 


Landscaping Information
Sun
Sun
Full Sun, Part Shade

Moisture
Moisture
Low

Summer Irrigation
Summer Irrigation
Max 1x / month once established

Nurseries
Nurseries

Ease of Care
Ease of Care
Very Easy

Cold Tolerance
Cold Tolerance
Tolerates cold to 15° F

Soil Drainage
Soil Drainage
Fast

Soil Description
Soil Description
Prefers sandy, gravelly soil. Soil PH: 5.0 - 8.0

Natural Setting
Site Type
Site Type
Sandy or gravelly places, dunes, desert washes to 7,500 ft.

Climate
Climate
Annual Precipitation: 2.8" - 37.5", Summer Precipitation: 0.18" - 3.13", Coldest Month: 26.9" - 59.3", Hottest Month: 52.4" - 88.8", Humidity: 0.82" - 39.44", Elevation: -8" - 9064"

Alternative Names
Common Names: California Evening Primrose


Sources include: Wikipedia. All text shown in the "About" section of these pages is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Plant observation data provided by the participants of the California Consortia of Herbaria, Sunset information provided by Jepson Flora Project. Propogation from seed information provided by the Santa Barbara Botanical Garden from "Seed Propagation of Native California Plants" by Dara E. Emery. Sources of plant photos include CalPhotos, Wikimedia Commons, and independent plant photographers who have agreed to share their images with Calscape. Other general sources of information include Calflora, CNPS Manual of Vegetation Online, Jepson Flora Project, Las Pilitas, Theodore Payne, Tree of Life, The Xerces Society, and information provided by CNPS volunteer editors, with special thanks to Don Rideout. Climate data used in creation of plant range maps is from PRISM Climate Group, Oregon State University, using 30 year (1981-2010) annual "normals" at an 800 meter spatial resolution.

Links:   Jepson eFlora Taxon Page  CalPhotos  Wikipedia  Calflora


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