Scientific Family
Nyctaginaceae
Synonyms
Mirabilis longiflora var. wrightiana
Other common names
long-flowered four o'clock
longtube four o'clock
Plant type
Forbs and Subshrubs
Origin
Native
Lifecycle
Perennial
Height
To 5 feet
Riparian
Yes
Heavily branched dark green forb with tuberous roots. The long white, tubular flowers with exerted pinkish-purple stamens and pistil are fragrant and open in the shade of the late afternoon.
Plant remarkable for 3 to 7 inch long slender white or pinkish tubular flowers and pinkish-purple exerted stamens and pistil. Each flower has 5 united sepals and a whorl of bracts; fruit is bluntly 5-angled in cross-section.
Habitat
Rocky canyons and slopes, rich soils among trees and shrubs.
Plant Community
Riparian
Pinyon Juniper Woodlands
Montane Conifer Forest
Low elevation
2500
High elevation
7000
Flower Characteristics
3 to 7 inches long, with a red throat, spreading into a long flower 1/2 to 3/4 inch across at the opening, with 6 long, purple stamens
and red anthers. Flower buds form loose clusters near the top of the plant but only 1 or 2 bloom at a time.
Flower color
White, pinkish, purplish
Flower shape
Regular
Tubular
Yes
First bloom month
August
Last bloom month
September
Flower clusters
Rounded
Leaf and Stem Characteristics
The lower leaves have stems 1-1/2 inches long; the upper leaves have no stem and taper to a sharp point. Leaves are 3 to 4 inches long. Branches and the flowers grow out of the leaf axils. The stem is heavy, brittle, and sticky.
Leaf type
Simple
Leaf color
Dark green
Leaf shape
Triangular
Leaf margin
Smooth
Leaves clasp
No
Leaf hairs
Stems
Spines
No
Fruit and Seed Characteristics
Bluntly 5-angled in cross section, ovoid.
Fruit type
Achene
Fruit color
Black to dark brown