Evening primroses constitute about 80 species of herbaceous plants in the genus Oenothera, family of Onagraceae. O.biennis, the best known species, is a robust, biennial weedy herb. Its root are large and fleshy, often 5 cm (2 in) in diameter at the crown, and its stems, 0.9 – 1.2 m (3 – 4 ft) high, are usually simple or branched. Its yellow flowers open in the evening. Native to the western Hemisphere, O. biennis has been introduced into most of Europe.
This plant is called as Evening Primrose because its flowers open at night, that is not normally of other flower that open their gloom in the morning. This plant can be pollinated by night time insects, such as the nocturnal sphinx moth. Evening Primrose has long been used as a relish for wine and to dispel the ill effects from drinking too much. Evening Primrose was also known as “King’s Cure-All” for at least five hundred years. The traditional uses of Primrose as a soothing remedy for coughs associated with colds and had also been used for mental depression.
The entire plants are edible and the entire plant has also been used as a poultice for wounds. The roots has been rubbed on muscles by Native American people to give them strength. The primary chemical constituents of this herb include of gamma linolenic acid (GLA), essential fatty acids (oleic, palmitic, stearic), prostaglandins, calcium and B vitamins.
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