Truly unidentified or is it really tobacco:
I posted a photo of this plant last year here hoping someone could I.D. it. It grows in my yd right next to 1 of my plant beds. It was there last year and I never saw it flower. It's back again in this year, and it's grown quite steadily. I'm gonna watch for flowers buds which I imagine will come soon. Until then, if somebody can I tell me Definitively what it is. Google image ID came out with tobacco , Nicotiana tabacum. I guess it could be tobacco but I don't know how it got in my yd.

We had some come up in our church veggie garden several years ago.
You didn't mention sticky and smelly so I'm going to guess it is not tobacco. Look for hanging clusters of tube flowers later this summer - they're hard to miss.

Definitely not sticky. I doubt it's tobacco. I didn't think about the sticky until you mentioned it but you're right. I remember seeing some of my friends, back in the day, when they had to go out and sucker tobacco, and then coming back with their hands covered with black resin. Some of them even got sick and having too much nicotine in their systems puked their guts out.
Maybe another form of Nicotiana, is that what you're saying?

All Nicotiana is sticky but only tobacco makes your hands numb and you sick.

I don't remember the Nicotiana Alba or Lime Green or a Deep Purple that I planted ever being sticky? Are all varieties sticky? But then I really didn't need to be touching it much, and compared to petunias, nothing seems sticky after feeling those. It does certainly look like one of the flowering Nicotianas though.

Guess we put a pin in this, unless somebody has an answer, until the flowers come.

Reminds me of Oenothera.

janinilulu said: Reminds me of Oenothera.

That's exactly what someone said last year.

Okay for any of you folks that are still interested:
This plant is now over 5' tall. I'm pretty sure it's just good old common evening primrose (Oenothera biennis). I know for sure it's a primrose because it's already got buds at the top of the plant ready to open real soon.



I've been through all the local species that it could be. This is pretty much the only 1 that gets this tall in our area. I'm gonna wait for the flowers which won't be far down the road for a final determination. Wanted to see what anybody thought if there's anybody still out there...

Your hills have the oenathera we don't have in Texas - saw a few of them with gorgeous yellow flowers across the Carolinas and Va, and it does look like that yellow flowered primrose. Hope you aren't unhappy at it, chuckl.

Love it!

Somehow it has made its way over the mountains into California. I've seen it around here a couple times growing along country roads. I checked Calflora - it says NOT NATIVE in big red letters.

First bloom was open early this morning. Case closed and thanks everyone!