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Sundrops, Evening Primrose
Oenothera
Oenothera
Sun exposure: full sun (6 or more hours of sunlight a day)
Soil: performs best in most garden soils
Traits
Special Care Instructions
None. Easy to grow and trouble free.
Flowering Time
June through September, depending on the variety.
Characteristics, Uses, and Fun Facts
Sundrops are bright, cheery additions to any perennial garden. Their eye-cathcing yellow flowers are held above the plant, attracting butterflies.
Evening Primrose come is all shades of pink. These are great groundcovers, quickly filling an area after one or two years.
Whether pink or yellow, all Oenothera love hot, dry sites. Plant these wear other plants tend to fade in the heat of the summer.
Native Americans used the roots of evening primrose to rub their moccasins before hunting, masking their smell and get closer to the animals. One of the magic powers of evening primrose was actually to make hunters lucky.
Varieties
Soil: performs best in most garden soils
Traits
Special Care Instructions
None. Easy to grow and trouble free.
Flowering Time
June through September, depending on the variety.
Characteristics, Uses, and Fun Facts
Sundrops are bright, cheery additions to any perennial garden. Their eye-cathcing yellow flowers are held above the plant, attracting butterflies.
Evening Primrose come is all shades of pink. These are great groundcovers, quickly filling an area after one or two years.
Whether pink or yellow, all Oenothera love hot, dry sites. Plant these wear other plants tend to fade in the heat of the summer.
Native Americans used the roots of evening primrose to rub their moccasins before hunting, masking their smell and get closer to the animals. One of the magic powers of evening primrose was actually to make hunters lucky.
Varieties
Growing Conditions
Deer Resistant
Attracts Butterflies
Crown of Gold Sundrops (O. tetragona) 18" tall
| • | Lemon yellow flowers sit atop beautifully variegated green leaves. |
| • | Midwest Native! |
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Glowing Magenta Evening Primrose (O. kunthiana) 4-6" tall
| • | This dwarf selection is unusually compact and has a very long bloom time. |
| • | Fuzzy buds open up to four-petaled, deep magenta-pink flowers from early summer into fall. |
| • | Plants form a small mound of glossy, dark green, lance-shaped leaves that really shows off the bright flowers. |
| • | This plant loves hot, dry sites. |
Siskyou Evening Primrose (O. berlandieri) 10-12" tall
| • | A fast growing ground cover! |
| • | Covered in clear pink flowers that look translucent in the summer sunshine. |
| • | Wonderful when used in drifts, this plant is best in drier soils where its tendency to happily ramble is curtailed. |
| • | Drought tolerant and easy to grow! |
| • | Bright yellow, sweetly fragrant flowers on tall stems in June, and they will re-flower if trimmed back early. |
| • | The plants over winter as semi-evergreen basal rosettes that have a good red fall color. |
| • | Perfect for the front or middle of the border with its short and compact habit. |
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Smith's Variety (O. tetragona) 18-24" tall
| • | Young growth is green with a purple center! |
| • | Covered in clear mauve-pink flowers throughout summer |
| • | During the warmer months, foliage changes to mid-green. |
| • | Wonderful when used in drifts, this plant is best in drier soils where its tendency to happily ramble is curtailed. |
Twilight Evening Primrose (O. berlandieri) 10-12" tall
| • | Large, brilliant gold flowers open from bright orange buds. |
| • | Intense green, hairy foliage turns red in the fall. |
| • | Blooms all summer long! |
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Yella Fella Sundrops (O. pilosella) 16" tall
Siskyou Evening Primrose and Blue Flax