Scarlet Beeblossom (Oenothera suffrutescens)
Shrubs Around Las Vegas, Vegetation Around Las Vegas

General: Scarlet Beeblossom (Oenothera suffrutescens) is an upright subshrub that tends to grow from a single point with straight stems radiating upward. The leaves are long and narrow with wavy margins and a white central vein. The flowers are white with five widely spread petals that open to a flat face. As the flowers age, they crumple and turn red. The stamens and pistil are long and hang out from the front of the flower.

Scarlet Beeblossom is a fairly common component of vegetation communities in dry, well-drained gravelly areas on bajadas into the lower mountains in the Upper Sonoran (Mojave Desert Scrub) life zone.

Around Las Vegas, look for Scarlet Beeblossom on hillsides and flats at Red Rock Canyon NCA, the Sheep Range, and the Gold Butte region.

Family: Evening Primrose (Onagraceae). Formerly Scarlet Gaura (Gaura coccinea).