This perennial with sky-blue flowers blooms through dry and hot summers.
Dont let the frothy beauty of this tufted plant fool you.
Each five-petal blue flower lasts only one day: opening in the morning but dropping petals by late afternoon.
Flax grows as a large carpet of color in its native environments of Europe and Asia.
A seed packet containing about 400 seeds covers roughly 80 square feet.
Tamp down the soil so the seeds have soil contact, do not cover them.
Water the areas thoroughly but gently so you dont wash away the seeds.
Keep it moist until about four weeks after the seedlings emerge to encourage a strong root system.
Do not thin the plants.
Some of the plants grown this way may even flower the first year.
Flax Care Tips
Light
Full sun is essential for flax to thrive.
In southern locations, partial shade is acceptable.
Soil and Water
The soil needs to be well-drained.
Wet feet will kill this plant.
The pH can be anywhere from slightly acidic to slightly alkaline.
Other than watering until the plants are established, flax does not need supplemental watering.
Do not add fertilizer or manure.
In soil that is too rich, the bloom is reduced.
Pruning
As the bloom period comes to an end, flax tends to look leggy.
At that point, you’ve got the option to trim it back by half its height.
This might coax it into sporadically producing additional flowers in the early fall.
To prevent the pots from toppling over, select short varieties.
Flax is best propagated from seed as described above.
It grows 12 to 15 inches tall.
It has blue flowers and grows 18 to 30 inches tall.
Zone 3-8
Flowering Flax
Not all flax is bluethis annual flax variety has scarlet flowers.
The species is naturally found in North Africa and southern Europe.
It grows 12 to 36 inches tall.
Today, linen is made from the stems of several varieties of common flax (Linum usitatissimum).
Its the seeds which are eaten raw or pressed to make oil.
