Blue flax (Linum lewisii) is a truly unique native perennial that will add a beautiful splash of blue to your garden or landscape. Used for its blue color and light appearance, blue flax grows up to 30 inches tall and 20 inches wide. The five petal flowers are 1 to 1.5 inches in diameter and each stem produces several flowers along its length from bottom to top. Usually only one flower is open at a time and lower flowers start to seed while upper flowers are still blooming. Blooms can last for months, flowering from May through August.

Plant in dry, well draining soil or sow seeds directly into soil. Cover the seeds with ⅛  inch of soil. Sunlight is required for germination, so don’t bury them too deep. Once established, do not over water. Blue flax is a highly drought tolerant plant that will readily self seed when conditions are favorable.

Linium lewisii is native to western North America. It can be found from Alaska to Baja CA, and from the Pacific coast to the Mississippi River. It grows at many different elevations, ranging from sea level up to 11,000 feet in the Sierra Nevada mountains.