Oenothera
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Oenothera is a genus of about 125 species of annual, biennial and perennial herbs in the family Onagraceae. They are known as evening primroses, and are native to North and South America.
O. biennis, the Common evening primrose, native to eastern North America, is a very popular garden plant, and is now also naturalised in parts of Europe and Asia. Its pale yellow flowers open in the evening, hence the name "evening primrose".
The seeds of the evening primrose contains gamma-linolenic acid (GLA), a rare essential fatty acid.
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