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Big Fruit Evening Primrose

Oenothera macrocarpa

—
Not scored

Native status unresolved in Arkansas. How scores work Is it native here?

Profile 65%

Height
8–10 inches
Spread
1–1.5 feet
Light
Sun
Soil moisture
Dry

Space about 1 ft apart from its recorded spread, about 100 per 100 sq ft. Enter your bed size for a count

Will it fit your yard?

At a glance

Life cycle
Perennial
Bloom
May to August

Not yet recorded · Leaves

Recorded in 2 Arkansas counties.

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

22CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including AR

Genus host records with ranges including AR · Oenothera

  • Amphion floridensisNessus Sphinx
  • Apantesis argeArge Tiger Moth
  • Atroposia oenotheranaPrimrose Cochylid
  • Desmia funeralisGrape Leaffolder Moth
  • Eudryas unioPearly Wood-Nymph
  • Eumorpha fasciatusBanded Sphinx
  • Eupithecia miserulataCommon Eupithacia, Common Pug
  • Hyles lineataWhite-Lined Sphinx
  • Mompha albocapitellaWhite-Based Mompha
  • Mompha circumscriptellaCircumscript Mompha
Show all 22
  • Mompha eloisellaRed-Streaked Mompha
  • Papaipema nebrisStalk Borer
  • Proserpinus gauraeProud Sphinx
  • Proserpinus juanitaJuanita Sphinx
  • Schinia floridaPrimrose Flower Moth, Evening Primrose Flower Moth
  • Schinia gauraeClouded Crimson
  • Sparganothis sulfureanaSparganothis Fruitworm Moth, Sulfur Leafroller, False Yellow-Head
  • Spodoptera eridaniaSouthern Armyworm Moth
  • Dichomeris agonia
  • Mompha brevivittella
  • Mompha rufocristatella
  • Mompha stellella
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
—BeesSoutheastern regional records
4Specialist beesPollen specialists

Pollen specialists · Oenothera

  • Lasioglossum aberrans
  • Lasioglossum lusorium
  • Lasioglossum oenotherae
  • Melissodes fimbriatus
Smith, Bachelder, Russell, Morales, Mosher & Seltmann 2024, Bee-Specialization-Modeling v0.6.1 (specialist host table compiled from J. Fowler's pollen specialist bee lists), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
5BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Oenothera

  • Columbina passerinaCommon Ground Dove
  • Meleagris gallopavoWild Turkey
  • Ortalis vetulaPlain Chachalaca
  • Tympanuchus pallidicinctusLesser Prairie-Chicken
  • Zenaida macrouraMourning Dove
Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)

Direct food only: birds recorded eating this genus across North America. Caterpillars on host plants also feed nesting birds. NC Native Plant Society: butterfly gardening

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Onagraceae
Hardiness
Zones 3–7
Flower color
Yellow

What its natural habitat tells you

Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.

Growing sources and scope

Conservation status

Arkansas rankSNR
Global rankNot available
AR statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source

In your garden

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Sources