New Zealand Flax (Phormium sp.) are large strap-leafed evergreen perennials that for many years were placed in the Agave family (Agavaceae) - Current taxonomic treatment has recently created the family Phormiaceae into which Phormium and Dianella have been placed. There are two species in the genus. Phormium tenax, the Coastal Flax, is the larger and more common plant in cultivation; its long strap leaves in shades of green, bronze and maroon are a familiar sight to gardeners in California. The Mountain Flax, Phormium cookianum (P. coloensoi), is a smaller, more graceful plant that has just lately been gaining popularity in California. Both of these plants are useful and attractive in the right situation, but the real gems are the colorful cultivars and interspecific hybrids that have been recently introduced into the California nursery trade. The recent creation of the Phormiaceae and restoration of historical names has lately added to confusion.

San Marcos Growers has been growing many of the new flax cultivars since 1983. See History of Flax Introduction for a detailed account of how San Marcos Growers became involved in the introduction of new cultivars into the nursery trade. We have grown these plants both as a container crop and a field crop for cut foliage production. Some of our specimen sized plants have been used in exhibits at the Rockefeller Center in New York and at Longwood Gardens in Pennsylvania. In the demonstration garden on the nursery grounds, each variety that we sell has been planted into a garden setting. In the time that we have been growing and selling this group of plants we have learned much about them. We wish to share our observations and experiences with you. In 1986 we printed a handout titled "Cut Me Some Flax: Phormium Hybrids". Since that time we have added new varieties to our list and updated information on many of the previous varieties that we listed. Some of our earlier information was from observation of these plants in New Zealand; now we are able to relate our experience with plants grown in California. Have a look at some of our hybrid flax samples.

Cultural Notes
Cultural practices for the flax hybrids are similar to those for the species with a few exceptions. As a general rule the hybrid flax are not as durable as Phormium tenax and are usually less tolerant to extremely hot or cold temperatures, prolonged dry conditions and heavy soil. We have noted that during the hot and dry Santa Ana conditions we experience in Southern California, sunburn is likely on the cultivars that have the graceful weeping leaves; cold temperatures below 20 F are likely to scald the leaves of these plants as well. In hot inland valleys it would be wise to use these cultivars in bright shade where there is protection from the sun. The upright growing cultivars are affected less by these extremes in temperature. We have found the hybrids to be nearly as drought resistant as Phormium tenax. Plants look much better with occasional irrigation but can survive extensive periods without it; once, we let a planting go the entire summer without watering and the plants remained healthy. There is a tendency for the slower growing hybrids to languish in poor heavy soil. If possible, position plants on a slope or mound when given this soil condition. Phormium plants suffer from few other maladies. Occasional long tailed mealy bug attacks can be controlled through sprays, and snails that often use the underside of the leaves for an abode can be easily picked off or poisoned. The most serious pest we have seen on New Zealand Flax is the New Zealand Flax Mealybug (Balanococcus diminutus). An infestation of this pest threatens the long term health of the plant.

Color Stability
The most serious complaint we have on the hybrid flax is the tendency of the colorful leaf forms to revert back to a green or bronze color. When a shoot of an unwanted color is seen on a hybrid plant, this shoot should be cut off at the base. With some of the hybrids it is the new foliage that is the showiest, and it is often best to remove all of the older leaves as the new ones emerge. In the individual listings below we have indicated the color forms that are least likely to revert by noting them as "Stable". If diligence is used, even the plants most likely to revert can be kept the original color. It should be noted that not all of the shoots with a different color than the original plant are detrimental; Phormium 'Cream Delight', one of the showiest of all of the cultivars, was a vegetative sport from Phormium 'Tricolor'.

Flowering
New Zealand Flax is rarely grown for its flowers, as it is the colorful foliage or striking form that is of primary interest. However, Flax will often flower in the garden in late spring or early summer, and are not only showy but also attract nectar seeking birds. The flowers on Phormium tenax and many of the hybrids are orange-red and held upright on a tall stalk above the foliage. Phormium cookianum, and the hybrids more closely aligned with it, have greenish-yellow flowers that are held horizontally on an arching flower stalk. The fruit that follows is also quite different: P. tenax has its woody bean-like fruit held upright and P. cookianum has twisted dangling fruit. The flowers and dried fruit of both types are useful in large flower arrangements.

What's In A Name?

Flax
We are sometimes asked what the common name "flax" means and why it is applied to several very different plants. The fibrous nature of "flax" plants and their usage for items such as rope and clothing is what links such unrelated plants as the "true" or Asian Flax (Linum usitatissimun) and New Zealand Flax (Phormium sp.). True Flax, and its ornamental relative, Yellow Flax (Reinwardia indica), are both dicotyledons in the Linaceae, or Flax family; the New Zealand Flax are monocotyledons that until recently were placed in the Agavaceae, or Agave Family. On Captain Cook's second expedition to the South Pacific in 1773 Phormium tenax was first described, but it was the early traders who came to New Zealand who noted the similarity between its fiber and that of the true flax. These traders observed the usage of Phormium by the Maori, the Polynesian people who had settled in New Zealand. The Maori tribes used the name "harakeke" for Phormium tenax and "wharariki" for the smaller Mountain Flax, Phormium cookianum. From both of these plants the Maori used the leaves for weaving baskets, mats, head-bands, and other items. They used the fibers of the leaves for making clothing, fishing nets, and ropes. The roots yielded the material to make medicine and nectar was obtained from the flowers as was pollen to make face powder. Even the spent flower stalks were used to make rafts to cross rivers and lakes.

Phormium
It is from the use of the New Zealand Flax leaves in the making of baskets that gives us the scientific name Phormium, which translates from Greek as basket. The recent creation of the Phormiaceae and restoration of historical names has lately added to confusion. While New Zealand botanists insist that Phormium cookianum is the valid name for the mountain flax, many recent texts, including Sunset's Western Garden Book and The Royal Horticultural Encyclopedia of Plants, have adopted the synonym P. colensoi as the current name. With respect to the treatment of the genus in New Zealand we have retained the name Phormium cookianum.

Upright Flax
Slightly Arching
Arching Flax

Cultivars

Phormium 'Alison Blackman'
Upright perennial to 4' tall w/olive green-bronze foliage w/cream-yellow variegation. Stable (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Apricot Queen'
Slightly arching 3-5 feet tall plant with twisting 1 1/2" wide pale yellow leaves with green margins that flush an apricot color in fall. Garden Picture Stable.(We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium Black Adder ['FIT01']
Perennial to 3-4' tall w/ arching dark maroon to black foliage that fades to green. (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Bobby Dazzler'
Perennial to 3-5' tall w/ slightly arching scarlet leaves like 'Dazzler' but larger. (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Bronze Baby'
Upright 3 feet tall with 1 1/2" wide dark reddish-brown foliage that curves gracefully at tips. A nice medium sized narrow dark reddish brown flax. Good for mass plantings. Stable. (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Carousel'
Perennial. Slightly arching to 3' tall w/multi-colored leaves (green, pink, orange) (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Chocolate'
4 feet Upright growing with chocolate brown foliage. This is a new cultivar received from South Africa.(We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium cookianum (P. colensoi)
A medium sized (4-5 feet) plant with 2 1/2" wide olive-green leaves that arch gracefully. This is the parent that gives the arch to many of the hybrids. Grows well in shade. Stable.

Phormium cookianum 'Blondie'
Arching narrow cream- & green variegated lvs 2' tall by 3-4' wide. +/- Stable.

Phormium cookianum 'Cream Delight'
A broad plant to 3 feet tall with bold 2 1/2" wide arching leaves that have a cream-yellow midstripe and green margins edged with red. Grows well in light shade. Garden Picture - Stable.

Phormium cookianum 'Emerald Gem'
Perennial. Dwarf upright plant to 2' tall w/green leaves. Yellow flowers late spring. Stable. (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium cookianum 'Tricolor'
A broad plant to 4 feet tall with wide leaves that have a broad central green band surrounded by yellow stripes and red margins. A popular hybrid since it was produced in the 1950's. Garden Planting - Stable. (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Dark Delight'
This slightly arching 3-4 feet tall plant has 1-2" wide leaves that are a dark reddish brown. This is the darkest flax hybrid readily available in the U.S. Great to contrast against silver foliage. Stable.

Phormium "Dark Delight Seedling"
Perennial to 3-4' tall. Dark reddish-brown slightly arching foliage. Stable.

Phormium 'Dazzler'
A slightly arching 3 feet tall plant with 1 1/2" wide leaves that are striped with deep maroon and scarlet. The reddest of the Flax - Remove old foliage. Garden Planting (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Duet'
Perennial to 2' tall. Upright to slightly spreading foliage with cream variegation. Sun/Light shade. Stable. (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Dusky Chief'
This upright flax grows 3-4 feet tall with 1 1/2" wide maroon red foliage that curves gracefully at tips. A beautiful medium sized red flax. Stable.

Phormium 'Dusky Maiden'
Perennial to 3-4' tall. Red-brown narrow foliage arches at tips. (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Dwarf Burgundy'
Perennial to 3-4' tall. Slightly arching maroon foliage. (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Ed Carman' Perennial 24-30" tall w/ upright dark bronze-green leaves edged w/pink to white edge. (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Electric Black Light'
Upright very slow growing perennial to 2' tall w/dark near black foliage. (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Evening Glow'
Perennial to 3-4' tall with apricot-pink to rose-red slightly arching foliage. Stable.

Phormium 'Firebird'
An upright plant to 5-6 feet tall with stiff 2" wide rose-red leaves with bronze-green margins. Red tones fade to a bronze-orange in summer. Garden Planting. Stable.

Phormium 'Golden Ray'
Semi-arching plant to 4-5' tall w/green leaves w/creamy yellow margins and red edges. (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Goldsword'
Perennial to 2-3 ' tall. Broad stiff yellow foliage w/ green margins. (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Guardsman'
This large upright growing flax can reach 6-7 feet with a 1 1/2" wide bronze-maroon leaves that have deep scarlet margins. This recent introduction from New Zealand is only available in larger sizes. Stable.

Phormium 'Jack Spratt'
A small upright plant to 18 in. tall with narrow 1/2" wide twisting reddish-brown leaves. Our smallest flax -Would be great for mass plantings in well drained soils or use in pots but lacked vigor and was not really long sustainable in the landscape Stable. (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Jester'
Perennial. 18" tall w/ arching leaves w/ pinkish orange midrib and lime green edges. Reverts but manageable with work.

Phormium 'Jubilee'
Perennial. 2-3' tall w arching leaves w/orange red margins and green center. (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Maori Chief'
A robust upright plant to 6 feet tall with 2 1/2" wide green centered rose-red margined leaves which arch at the tips. A more refined plant and smaller plant than 'Sundowner'. Garden Planting Stable.

Phormium 'Maori Maiden'
This Medium sized plant grows 2-3 feet tall with slightly arching 1 1/2 inch wide apricot to rose-red colored leaves with thin green margins. One of the most beautiful if maintained. Garden Planting (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Maori Queen'
A stiff upright plant to 4-5 feet tall with 2" wide olive-green leaves edged rose-red. Edges fade to a cream color. Cut out old foliage as it fades. Garden Planting (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Maori Sunrise'
Arching in foliage shades of orange, rose, light green & yellow. (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Margaret Jones'
Perennial to 3-4' tall. Slightly arching foliage striped deep maroon and scarlet. Stable (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Mat's Merlot'
Perennial to 4-5' tall. Dark reddish-brown slightly arching foliage.

Phormium 'Monrovia Red'
Perennial to 2-3 feet tall arching 1 1/2' wide leaves of deep maroon-red. It is a vegetative sport of the cultivar 'Dazzler'. Garden Planting Stable. (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Pink Mist'
Perennial to 2-3' tall with lax pink foliage banked with green. (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Pink Stripe'
Upright and spreading cultivar to 4-6 feet tall plant with bronze-green (almost gray) leaves with a broad bright pink margin at the leaf bases that narrows and gradually disappears at the leaf tip. From South Africa. Appears Stable. (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Platt's Black'
Perennial to 2-3' tall w/ arching dark maroon to black foliage turning olve green. (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Red-Dark Green'
Perennial to 48" w/upright broad olive leaves w/ red variegation. (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Red-Edge'
Perennial to 36" w/ upright wavy green leaves w/ red margins. (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Rubrum'
A small upright plant to 2-3 feet tall with maroon foliage. cultivar from South Africa. The name 'Rubrum is used for several other cultivars which undoubtably will lead to confusion. Smaller and darker than Bronze Baby. Stable..

Phormium 'Sea Jade'
An upright plant to 3-4 feet tall with blunt tipped rich green leaves that have a strong maroon to bronze midrib stripe. An unusual and attractive plant. Stable. (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Shirazz'
Perennial to 2-3' tall. Slightly arching deep maroon foliage. Stable (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Sundowner'
A large upright grower to 7-9 feet tall with 2 1/2" wide bronze-green leaves with rose-pink margins that fade to cream in summer. New foliage is always stunning! Use where there is space. Cut out old foliage. (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Surfer'
Perennial to 3-4' tall. Twisted Brown leaves w/ yellow-green central stripe. Stable (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Sunset'
An upright flax to 5 feet tall with elegant long 1 1/2" wide leaves arch at the tips in apricot to pink tones blending with green. Cut out bronze foliage to maintain good color. +/- Stable.

Phormium Sweet Mist ['PHOS2']
Grass-like to 1' tall w/narrow 1/4" wide bronze lvs. (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium tenax
A large (8 feet or better) upright plant with 3-4 inch wide olive green leaves. Orange-red flowers form on tall stalks in late spring. Usually grown from seed and is variable. Very tough and useful in adverse situations. Garden Planting (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium tenax 'Atropurpureum'
A large (8 feet or better) upright plant with 3-4" wide reddish-purple leaves. Grown from seed and is variable. Very tough and useful in adverse situations. (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium tenax 'Variegata'
A large upright plant to 8 feet tall with green and cream bands running lengthwise on broad 3" wide leaves. Stable. (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Terracotta'
Perennial to 3' tall. Arching foliage shades of orange, rose, light green & yellow. (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Tiny Tiger'
Dwarf plant to 12 inches tall with gray-green leaves with cream margins. +/- Stable (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Tom Thumb'
A small upright plant 2-3 feet tall with undulating 1/2" wide green leaves with red bronze margins. The smallest green flax we ever grew. Stable. (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Tony Tiger'
Dwarf plant to 2-3 feet tall with gray-green leaves with cream margins. +/- Stable (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Wildwood'
Perennial long dark, purple luxurious leaves gracefully arch to 4-6' ft. tall. One of the best large dark flaxes!

Phormium 'Wings of Gold'
Perennial to 3-4' tall. Upright olive green strap leaves have a yellow margin Sun/Light shade. +/- Stable (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Yellow Queen'
Perennial to 3-4' tall. Slightly arching pale yellow leaves w/ green margins. +/- Stable (We no longer grow this cultivar)

Phormium 'Yellow Wave'
A medium sized plant to 3-4 feet tall with arching 2" wide green leaves with a central yellow band that fades to green in fall. +/- Stable. (We no longer grow this cultivar)