Linum lewisii

Linum lewisii
In Elena Gallegos Picnic Area, Albuquerque, NM
Conservation status
Secure  (NatureServe)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Rosids
Order:	Malpighiales
Family:	Linaceae
Genus:	Linum
Species:	L. lewisii
Binomial name
Linum lewisii Pursh
Synonyms[1]
Adenolinum lewisii Kellogg Linum decurrens Kellogg Linum lyallanum Alef.

Linum lewisii (Linum perenne var. lewisii) (Lewis flax, blue flax or prairie flax) is a perennial plant in the family Linaceae, native to western North America.

Description

It is a slender herbaceous plant growing to 80 centimetres (31+1⁄2 inches) tall, with spirally arranged narrow lanceolate leaves 1–3 cm (1⁄2–1+1⁄4 in) long. The flowers are pale blue or lavender to white, often veined in darker blue, with five petals 1–1.5 cm long and in varying length styles.[2][3][4][5] The flowers open in the morning and fade, dropping their petals by noon on hot, sunny days.[6]

• 
  The inflorescence is a terminal open raceme.[4]
• 
  A lavender flower
• 
  The spirally arranged lanceolate leaves

Etymology

The species was named for North American explorer Meriwether Lewis.[7]

Distribution and habitat

The plant is native to western North America from Alaska south to Baja California, and from the Pacific Coast east to the Mississippi River.[8] It grows on ridges and dry slopes, from sea level in the north up to 11,000 feet (3,400 metres) in the Sierra Nevada.[9][10][2]

Cultivation

Blue flax is a durable wildflower in garden conditions, never becoming overly aggressive towards other plants. Plants are easily grown from seed.[6] Blue flax grows well in lean soils without much organic matter and are healthier in well-drained soils.[11]

References

1. "Linum lewisii Pursh". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
2. Norman F. Weeden (1996). A Sierra Nevada Flora (4th ed.). Wilderness Press. ISBN 9780899972046.
3. Klinkenberg, Brian, ed. (2014). "Linum lewisii". E-Flora BC: Electronic Atlas of the Plants of British Columbia [eflora.bc.ca]. Lab for Advanced Spatial Analysis, Department of Geography, University of British Columbia, Vancouver. Retrieved 2018-01-17.
4. Giblin, David, ed. (2015). "Linum lewisii". WTU Herbarium Image Collection. Burke Museum, University of Washington. Retrieved 2018-01-17.
5. "Linum lewisii". Jepson eFlora: Taxon page. Jepson Herbarium; University of California, Berkeley. 2015. Retrieved 2018-01-17.
6. Barr, Claude A. (1983). Jewels of the plains : wild flowers of the Great Plains grasslands and hills. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. p. 18. ISBN 0-8166-1127-0.
7. Reiner, Ralph E. (1969). Introducing the Flowering Beauty of Glacier National Park and the Majestic High Rockies. Glacier Park, Inc. p. 98.
8. USDA Plant Profile: Linum lewisii
9. Sullivan, Steven. K. (2015). "Linum lewisii". Wildflower Search. Retrieved 2018-01-17.
10. "Linum lewisii". PLANTS Database. United States Department of Agriculture; Natural Resources Conservation Service. 2015. Retrieved 2018-01-17.
11. "Blue flax". Fine Gardening. The Taunton Press, Inc. Retrieved 30 May 2023.