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Oenothera

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evening primrose

evening primrose

4-5 feet tall (1.5m) The yellow 4-petal flowers open at night, close during the day and grow on branches off the main stem. Soft hairy stem, alternating leaves, High in Omega essential fatty acids (especially the oil made from the seeds), and GLA, a fatty acid the body doesn’t produce, that helps prevent hardening of the arteries, heart disease, eczema, cirrhosis of the liver, multiple sclerosis, and high blood pressure. Evening Primrose is used to lower cholesterol, help sex hormones, both estrogen and testosterone, PMS, menopause, uterine muscles, nervous system, metabolism, diabetes, epilepsy, weight loss, endometriosis, rheumatoid arthritis, asthma, cough, migraines, relieve pain and inflammation, breast problems, bowel pains, hemorrhoids, prostate issues and gastro-intestinal disorders. Use in raw stir fry, casserole dishes. The whole plant is edible. Harvest seed pods before they flower, use like ochra. Seed pods are full of lots of tiny seeds. Root tea can be applied to hemorrhoids. The bark and the leaves are astringent and sedative.
Edible Plant Guide © 2012 Markus Rothkranz
The following article is from The Great Soviet Encyclopedia (1979). It might be outdated or ideologically biased.

Oenothera

 

(evening primrose), a genus of plants of the family Onagraceae. The plants are usually herbs with alternate leaves. The flowers are four-parted, and the fruit is a capsule. There are about 200 American species, distributed primarily in temperate regions. Many species were imported to Eurasia and other continents. The USSR has five species, including the common evening primrose (O. biennis) and O. odorata. Some species are used for genetic research. H. de Vries developed his mutation theory on the basis of tests with O. lamarckiana (also known as O. erythrosepala). Many species and hybrids of Oenothera are ornamentals. Sometimes the genus is divided into several independent genera. For example, O. muricata and O. biennis, both of which are found in the USSR, are sometimes placed in the genus Onagra.

The Great Soviet Encyclopedia, 3rd Edition (1970-1979). © 2010 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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References in periodicals archive
Novel biological properties of Oenothera paradoxa defatted seed extracts: Effects on metallopeptidase activity.J.
Oenothera biennisprefers light textured soils such as sandy, loamy, gravelly soils and alluvium in river floodplains.
Phytochemical analyses have shown that oenothein B is the main tannin isolated from Epilobium and Oenothera, followed by other flavonoids such as myricetin-, quercetin-, and kaempferol-glycosides [6-8].
Onagraceae (Evening Primrose Family) Oenothera biennis L.: Common evening primrose; native; FACU; 0
Gray) Towner [Berlandier's evening-primrose] Oenothera macrocarpa Nutt.
Johnst., Nolana gayana (Gaudich.) Koch y Oenothera arequipensis Munz & I.M.
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