Plant in full sun to light shade. Can tolerate fairly dry conditions (coastal) but looks best with occasional to regular irrigation. Cold hardy to 15-20° F and possibly root hardy below these temperatures but with severe foliage damage unless protected.

This cultivar was the result of crossing Phormium 'Yellow Wave' with P. cookianum 'Tricolor' and was bred by flax hybridiser Mr. F. Jury of Waitara, New Zealand. We had problems with our stock of this cultivar losing its apricot coloration as so later branded these plants as 'Yellow Queen' and in 2008 purchased new stock of 'Apricot Queen' from New Zealand. The original 'Apricot Queen' which we received from Margaret Jones's New Zealand Flax Hybridisers Nursery in 1985, was a very good cultivar but proved variable in our garden with some plants in containers for 10 years that never exceeded 2 feet but others in the ground reaching 4 feet or more (all from the same parent stock). We hoped the new stock better behaved and would retain its apricot color but it was not and we stopped growing this cultivar in 2008. 

The information about Phormium 'Apricot Queen' that is displayed on this web page is based on research conducted in our nursery's horticultural library and from reliable online resources. We will also include observations made about this plant as it grows in our nursery gardens and other gardens that we have visited, as well how the crops have performed in containers in our nursery field. We also incorporate comments that we receive from others and welcome hearing from anyone with additional information, particularly if they share cultural information that aids others growing this plant.