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Oenothera suffulta

roadside gaura

Onagraceae

South-central United States and northern Mexico

Attracts Pollinators Drought Tolerant

Native to North America

SunFull Sun

WaterLow · drought-tolerant

Overview

Oenothera suffulta is a slender annual in the evening primrose family, with erect, branching stems 8-24 inches (20-60 cm) tall. The narrow leaves are lance-shaped, 1-3 inches (2.5-7.5 cm) long, sometimes with wavy or toothed margins, and are largest near the base. Small four-petaled flowers, about 0.3-0.5 inch (8-13 mm) across, open white and fade to pink or rose as they age, carried in slender spikes at the stem tips. The flowers open toward evening and are pollinated by moths and bees. The fruit is a hard, ribbed, four-angled capsule. It grows on sandy or gravelly soils along roadsides, in prairies, fields, and other open, disturbed ground across the south-central United States and northern Mexico. As an annual it lives a single season and returns from self-sown seed, so populations shift with rainfall and ground disturbance.

Native Range

Oenothera suffulta is native to the south-central United States, including Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, and New Mexico, and into northern Mexico. It grows on sandy and gravelly soils in prairies, fields, and along roadsides.

Suggested Uses

Used in wildflower meadows, prairie plantings, and dry naturalized areas on sandy soil where light reseeding is acceptable. The evening flowers draw moths and bees. It is sown directly in place rather than grown as a bedding plant.

How to Identify

Recognize Oenothera suffulta by its slender branching stems and small four-petaled flowers that open white and age to pink or rose in narrow spikes. The flowers open toward evening. The hard, four-angled ribbed seed capsules and narrow lance-shaped leaves help separate it from related evening primroses.

Appearance

Size & Dimensions

Height8" - 2'

Width/Spread6" - 1'

Colors

Flower Colors

Foliage Colors

Fall Foliage Colors

Bloom Information

Bloom Period

~10 weeks

Spring Summer

Flowers open from spring into early summer, generally March to June. Each flower opens late in the day, lasts about a day, and shifts from white to pink as it ages. Bloom is heaviest after a moist winter and spring.

Detailed Descriptions

Flower Description

white aging to pink

Foliage Description

green

Growing Conditions

Sun Requirements

SunFull Sun

Requires 6-12 hours of direct sunlight daily

• Full Sun: 6+ hours of direct sunlight

• Partial Shade: 3-6 hours of direct sunlight

• Full Shade: Less than 3 hours of direct sunlight

Soil Requirements

pH Range6.0 - 8.0(Neutral)

357912

Soil Types

sand rocky loam

Drainagewell drained

Water & Climate

Water Needs

Low

Drought Tolerance

Drought tolerant when established

Care & Maintenance

Care Guide

Grows in full sun in sandy, gravelly, or other lean, well-drained soil with a pH near 6.0-8.0, and tolerates heat, drought, and poor ground. As a quick annual it grows from seed in fall or spring, flowers, sets seed, and dies. It needs no supplemental water in most of its range and no feeding. Rich or wet soil produces weak, floppy growth. Plants reseed in open ground and reappear where the soil is periodically disturbed.