Oenothera biennis
Evening primrose
Common names: Common evening primrose, Rapontikwurzel
At a glance
- Light
- Full sun
- Spacing
- 40 cm, rows 50 cm
- Lifespan
- Biennial
- Sowing
- May–Jul
- Harvest
- Jul–Sep
- Hardiness
- Hardy down to −15 °C
- Water need
- Low
Photo: Georg Slickers · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Source
This description was machine-translated.
Description
The evening primrose (Oenothera biennis) is a biennial wild herb that forms a rosette of leaves in its first year and grows up to 1.5 m tall in its second year. Its bright yellow flowers open only in the evening and emit a strong fragrance that attracts moths and other pollinators. The root is mildly peppery in early autumn and can be prepared like a parsnip; the seeds are pressed to produce the well‑known evening primrose oil. As a hardy bee‑friendly plant, it is suitable for natural gardens and thrives best on sparse, sunny sites.
Care instructions
Evening primrose prefers well‑drained, slightly nutrient‑poor soil and full sun; overly fertile soil reduces flowering and weakens root development. Water only when soil remains dry for an extended period; the plant does not tolerate waterlogged conditions. In the first year, only the leaf rosette forms; harvest the root in early autumn before the plant begins to flower. If left standing, the plant self‑seeds and reliably returns the following year. Withered stems can be left until spring; birds enjoy the seed heads in winter.
The care notes were machine-translated from German.
Garden year
SowingMay–Jul
HarvestJul–Sep
Germination
- Soil temperature
- from 10 °C, ideally 18 °C
- Days to sprout
- 10 to 28 days
- Light
- Needs light to sprout
- Sowing depth
- Press in, don't cover
- How to start
- Sow straight into the bed
Soil & site
Soil pH
Soil type
well-drained, sandy, lean, dry
The common evening primrose likes it barren and loves well-drained, sandy soils, as found on waste ground and verges. It does not tolerate waterlogging at all, so it belongs in a spot without compacted subsoil. Nutrient-rich, heavy garden soil tends to produce a lot of leaf mass and fewer flowers; lean soil suits it better.
Feeding
Light feeder
As a typical wild plant, the common evening primrose needs no extra feeding. Soil that is too rich in nutrients makes it run to leaf rather than flower abundantly. If the site is lean anyway, that is entirely enough for healthy growth.
Overwintering
In the first year, the common evening primrose forms only a leaf rosette, which is hardy and can stay in the bed without protection. Only in the second year does it send up the flower stem, and it dies after the seeds ripen. Winter protection is normally not necessary; at very exposed sites, a loose layer of leaves over the rosette helps.
Propagation
Methods
- From seed
Propagation is easiest by sowing, best directly where it is to grow from May to July. Press the fine seeds down only lightly, as the common evening primrose is a light-germinating seed. Once established, it usually self-seeds and turns up in new places in the bed the following year. If you want to control the sowing, collect the ripe seed capsules in late summer and sow them deliberately the next spring.
For your garden
Grow Evening primrose yourself
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