biology

Oenothera elata

Oenothera elata is a biology topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Oenothera elata rather than just read about it. In short: Oenothera elata is a species of Oenothera belonging to the family Onagraceae, known by the common name Hooker's evening primrose or tall evening primrose. Subspecies include hookeri, hirsutissima, longisima, jamesii, villosa and elata.

Key takeaways

Oenothera elata belongs to biology; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Oenothera elata to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Oenothera elata from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Oenothera elata is a species of Oenothera belonging to the family Onagraceae, known by the common name Hooker's evening primrose or tall evening primrose. Subspecies include hookeri, hirsutissima, longisima, jamesii, villosa and elata. It is native to much of western and central North America. The plants are quite tall, especially the hookeri subspecies, native to California, which can reach about 1.8 meters (6 feet) height. The plants are found along roadsides, in moist meadows, or in woodland, from sea level up to 9,000 ft (2,700 m) in elevation.

Description The stout, usually reddish stem has many long, narrow leaves, above a basal rosette. At its top is a large, open cluster of 2- to 4-inch wide yellow flowers with 4 large petals and protruding yellow stamens and 4-branched pistil, often covered in sticky pollen. The fragrant flowers open at dusk and wilt the next morning, turning orange or red.

Taxonomy Oenothera elata was scientifically described and given its accepted name by Carl Sigismund Kunth in 1823. It has 50 synonyms of the species or one of its three subspecies according to Plants of the World Online.

Uses The Zuni people apply a poultice of the powdered flower of the hookeri subspecies and saliva at night to swellings.

Gallery

References

Further reading Raven, Peter; Dietrich, Werner; Stubbe, Wilfried (Autumn 1979). "An Outline of the Systematics of Oenothera Subsect. Euoenothera (Onagraceae)". Systematic Botany. 4 (3): 242–252. Bibcode:1979SysBo...4..242R. doi:10.2307/2418422. JSTOR 2418422. Dietrich, Werner; L. Wagner, Warren (1987). "A New Combination and New Subspecies in Oenothera Elata Kunth (Onagraceae)". Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden. 74 (1): 151–152. Bibcode:1987AnMBG..74..151D. doi:10.2307/2399273. JSTOR 2399273.

External links Calflora Database: Oenothera elata (Hooker's evening primrose) Jepson Manual eFlora treatment of Oenothera elata Photo gallery

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Oenothera elata

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Oenothera elata claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In biology, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Oenothera elata before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Oenothera elata ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Oenothera elata

In research: Oenothera elata appears in biology research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Oenothera elata in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Oenothera elata is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Flora of California, Flora of Northwestern Mexico, Flora of the Northwestern United States, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Oenothera elata outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

Ask Teacher Smith questions about this articleOpens your AI tutor with a question about “Oenothera elata” →

Affiliate

Preply — study more efficiently by working with a personal tutor. 50% off.

How to study Oenothera elata in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Oenothera elata means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Oenothera elata out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Oenothera elata in simple terms?

Why does Oenothera elata matter?

Because it connects several biology ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Oenothera elata?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Oenothera elata.