Prairie Flax, Linum lewisii

About Prairie Flax (Linum lewisii) 48 Nurseries Carry This Plant

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Lewis flax, blue flax or prairie flax is a perennial flowering plant native to western North America from Alaska south to Baja California, and from the Pacific Coast east to the Mississippi River. It grows on ridges and dry slopes, from sea level in the north up to 3000 meter altitude in the south of the species' range. It is a slender herbaceous plant growing up to 90 centimeters tall, with spirally arranged narrow lance-shaped leaves 1-2 centimeters long. The flowers are pale blue or lavender to white, 1.5-3 centimeters in diameter, with five petals. Grows in a variety of forest and woodland habitats.

Plant Description

Plant Type

Perennial herb

Size

1.5 - 3 ft tall

Form

Upright

Growth Rate

Moderate

Dormancy

Winter Deciduous

Flower Color

Blue, White, Lavender

Flowering Season

Spring, Summer

Wildlife Supported

Butterflies & moths hosted ( 9 likely * ) SHOW ALL

Variegated Fritillary Euptoieta claudiaEuptoieta claudia

Alfalfa Looper Moth Autographa californicaAutographa californica

Armyworm Moth Mythimna unipunctaMythimna unipuncta

Corn Earworm Moth Helicoverpa zeaHelicoverpa zea

Tobacco Budworm Moth Chloridea virescensChloridea virescens

The Nutmeg Anarta trifoliiAnarta trifolii

Tessellate Dart Euxoa tessellataEuxoa tessellata

Landscaping Information

Sun

Full Sun

Moisture

Very Low

Nurseries

Carried by 48

Ease of Care

Very Easy

Cold Tolerance

Tolerates cold to -20° F

Soil Drainage

Fast, Medium, Slow

Soil Description

Prefers sandy or loamy soils. Does not grow well in clay soils.. Soil PH: 5.0 - 7.0

Common uses

Deer Resistant

Companion Plants

Combine with complementary colored annuals or other perennial herbs such as California Poppy (Eschscholzia californica), Golden Yarrow (Eriophyllum confertiflorum) and Clarkia species

Propagation?

For propagating by seed: No treatment.

Natural Setting

Site Type

Dry open ridges, slopes

Climate

Annual Precipitation: 6.4" - 123.1", Summer Precipitation: 0.21" - 4.39", Coldest Month: 18.1" - 56.3", Hottest Month: 39.0" - 82.1", Humidity: 0.08" - 32.59", Elevation: 17" - 14119"

Alternative Names

Botanical Names: Linum lewisii var. alpicola,Linum lewisii var. lewisii
Common Names: Lewis Flax, Lewis' Flax, Western Blue Flax

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Sources include: Wikipedia. All text shown in the "About" section of these pages is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Plant observation data provided by the participants of the California Consortia of Herbaria, Sunset information provided by Jepson Flora Project. Propogation from seed information provided by the Santa Barbara Botanical Garden from "Seed Propagation of Native California Plants" by Dara E. Emery. Sources of plant photos include CalPhotos, Wikimedia Commons, and independent plant photographers who have agreed to share their images with Calscape. Other general sources of information include Calflora, CNPS Manual of Vegetation Online, Jepson Flora Project, Las Pilitas, Theodore Payne, Tree of Life, The Xerces Society, and information provided by CNPS volunteer editors, with special thanks to Don Rideout. Climate data used in creation of plant range maps is from PRISM Climate Group, Oregon State University, using 30 year (1981-2010) annual "normals" at an 800 meter spatial resolution.

Links: Jepson eFlora Taxon Page CalPhotos Wikipedia Calflora

Prairie Flax

Linum lewisii

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Prairie FlaxLinum lewisii

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Prairie Flax

Linum lewisii