Biology:Linum lewisii

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Short description: Plant species in the flax family

Linum lewisii
Light blue flowers scattered over thin green stems in a field of tan grasses
In Elena Gallegos Picnic Area, Albuquerque, NM
Scientific classification edit
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Malpighiales
Family: Linaceae
Genus: Linum
Species:
L. lewisii
Binomial name
Linum lewisii
Varieties
  • Jeps.
  • Linum lewisii var. lepagei Linum lewisii var. alpicola
  • (B.Boivin) C.M.Rogers Linum lewisii var. lewisii
Synonyms[1]

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]
    The inflorescence is a terminal open raceme.[4]
  • A lavender flower
    A lavender flower
  • The spirally arranged lanceolate leaves
    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" (in en). Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. http://www.plantsoftheworldonline.org/taxon/140855-2. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Norman F. Weeden (1996). A Sierra Nevada Flora (4th ed.). Wilderness Press. ISBN 9780899972046. https://archive.org/details/sierranevadaflor00weed. 
  3. ↑ Klinkenberg, Brian, ed (2014). "Linum lewisii". Lab for Advanced Spatial Analysis, Department of Geography, University of British Columbia, Vancouver. http://linnet.geog.ubc.ca/Atlas/Atlas.aspx?sciname=Linum%20lewisii. Retrieved 2018-01-17. 
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Giblin, David, ed (2015). "Linum lewisii". Burke Museum, University of Washington. http://biology.burke.washington.edu/herbarium/imagecollection.php?Genus=Linum&Species=lewisii. Retrieved 2018-01-17. 
  5. ↑ "Linum lewisii". Jepson Herbarium; University of California, Berkeley. 2015. http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/cgi-bin/get_IJM.pl?tid=Linum%20lewisii. Retrieved 2018-01-17. 
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 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". http://www.wildflowersearch.com/search?&PlantName=Linum+lewisii. Retrieved 2018-01-17. 
  10. ↑ "Linum lewisii". United States Department of Agriculture; Natural Resources Conservation Service. 2015. https://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=LILE3. 
  11. ↑ "Blue flax". The Taunton Press, Inc.. https://www.finegardening.com/plant/blue-flax-linum-lewisii. 

Wikidata ☰ Q3113824 entry



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