Evening primrose instructions

Once you get the seed, plant it either in autumn or in early spring. Pick a location in full sun with good drainage and where the soil has been previously cultivated. Sow the seed on top of the ground. After germination, thin the seedlings so that they are one foot apart.

In the first year, evening primrose will not flower but will simply produce a leafy rosette at ground level. The leaves of this basal rosette are 4 to 8 inches long and lance-shaped. A white vein runs along the middle of each leaf.

In the second year, the tall, stiff, purple-tinged flower stem shoots up out of this base. About midway up this flower stem, secondary branching occurs. The leaves become progressively smaller the farther you go up the flower stem.

The four-petaled blooms that begin coming out at the start of summer are about one inch wide. They are pollinated by night-flying insects. The seeds that form thereafter are eaten by wild birds.

Light

Evening primrose is a very easy plant to grow, but a major requirement for growing it is full sun.

Soil

Another major requirement for growing evening primrose is good drainage.

Water

Evening primrose does best with adequate irrigation. Still, the plant is quite drought tolerant.

Fertilizer

Although evening primrose will perform better in soil of average fertility, performance can be heightened by growing it in soil that has been amended