I've had a similar expereince to yours, but in more of a Murphy's Law way: once I actually DO get germination of some seeds, I somehow get a big plant of it that year--often at your swap! This year I have learned that if there's a weed doing well in my yard, check and see if there are pretty cultivars of it. I don't like the look of wild Fleabane (erigeron) because it's tall and spindly with a tiny flower. But I just learned on the Cottage forum about cultivars with big flowers, some of them short, and I may be doing an order with hardyplants to get some seed. I looked up that oenothera on Annie's Annuals, and it sounds great! Is it really fragrant? In my yard, the deer gobble every oenethera I've tried, yet Annie's says it's deer-resistant. But Scott's yard has room for a white oenothera... :)

I have an Evening Primrose that I'm thinking about digging up. It's crowding another plant, and I wasn't sure what to do with it. I just got it last year in a trade, so I'm only guessing which kind of primrose it is by the pics on the trader's website. It looks like Oenothera biennis. Yellow flowers, basal rosette, maybe about 2+ft while in bloom. Does this sound like what you're looking for? Click on my username to email me. Pam

Is there another weedy plant that looks just like Oenothera biennis, once its blooms are spent? After the power company cut a swath of destruction at the back of our property, weeds and vines if all kinds quickly filled the void. Poison ivy and ticks kept me away from the area for months, and as it is below a hedge of Rose of Sharon, we couldn't see what was happening. Recently I found many huge plants that are structured exactly like Oenothera biennis; although I never saw them in flower, I was sure that's what they were. Now about three weeks later, I am seeing alarmingly great clouds of chaff arising from that area. I discovered it all floats up from these plants, which are exploding with fluff. None of you have mentioned chaff, so I must have misidentified it. Any ideas what mine could be?

Kasha, I have this plant. We call it Evening Primrose, or moonflower. I saw it at a friends house and fell in Love with it. I now have the joy of watching it open every evening spring - summer. It is still green but I think it would be best to wait till spring. I would send you some plants then. If you want seed I will have to dry them and you will not have flowers for 2 years. gmom