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Linum perenne
| Common name: |
Perennial Flax |
Family: |
Linaceae |
| Author: |
L. |
Botanical references: |
200 |
| Synonyms: |
Linum lewisii (Pursh.) |
| Known Hazards: |
The raw seed contains cyanide and should not be eaten raw[183]. The cooked seed is perfectly safe[183]. |
| Range: |
Europe. Western N. America. |
| Habitat: |
Calcareous grassland[244]. Prairies to alpine ridges, usually on dry well-drained soils in Western N. America[60]. |
| Edibility Rating (1-5): |
3 | Medicinal Rating (1-5): | 2 |
| Other Possible Synonyms: | From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below. |
| L. perenne lewisii[H]
L. perenne subsp. lewisii[H]
L. sibirica[H]
|
| Other Common Names: | From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below. |
| Blue Flax [H,B,P], Perennial Flax [H,L], Prairie Flax [H,B,P], Ya Ma [E], |
| Epithets: | From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets |
|
perenne = perennial;
|
| Systematics: | From a USDA
Plants Database |
|
Order: Linales. Flax family
|
| Other Range Info: |
From the Ethnobotany Database |
|
China; Europe; Us
|
Physical Characteristics
Perennial growing to 0.3m by 0.15m . It is hardy to zone 7 and is not frost tender. It is in flower from June to July, and the seeds ripen in August. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Bees and flies.
We rate it 3/5 for edibility and
2/5 for medicinal use.
The plant prefers light (sandy) and medium (loamy) soils and requires well-drained soil.
The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils and can grow in very alkaline soil.
It cannot grow in the shade.
It requires dry or moist soil and can tolerate drought.
Habitats and Possible Locations
Cultivated Beds.Edible Uses
Seed.
Seed - cooked[46, 61, 183]. A pleasant nutty taste and very
nutritious[94]. The seed has a high oil content and can be eaten on its own
or used as a flavouring[161, 183]. It should not be eaten raw because it
contains cyanide but this is destroyed in the cooking process[183].
Medicinal Uses
Disclaimer
Antirheumatic; Carminative; Emollient; Ophthalmic; Poultice; Stomachic.
The plant is antirheumatic, carminative and stomachic[94, 257].
The oil in the seed has soothing and lubricating properties, and is used in
medicines to soothe tonsillitis, sore throats, coughs, colds, constipation,
gravel and stones[244]. When mixed with an equal quantity of lime water it is
used to treat burns and scalds[244].
A poultice of the fresh crushed leaves has been used to treat eye
problems[94, 213].
A tincture of the entire plant is used in the treatment of diarrhoea[4].
The fresh herb is boiled and taken internally for the treatment of rheumatic
pains, heartburn, colds, coughs and dropsy[4, 257]. A poultice of the plant
is applied to bruises to reduce the swelling[257].
The seeds are emollient[240]. An eye medicine is made from them[257].
An infusion of the roots is used as an eyewash[257].
Other Uses
Cosmetic; Fibre; Hair; Oil; Paper.
A drying oil is obtained from the seed. Used mainly for lighting[178],
though it could also be used in all the ways that linseed oil (from Linum
usitatissimum) is used - in paints, varnishes etc[115].
An infusion of the whole plant is used as a hair and skin wash[257]. It is
said to be very beneficial to the skin and also to help prevent hair
loss[257].
A good fibre is obtained from the stems, it is inferior to flax (Linum
usitatissimum)[115] but is used for making cloth, nets, string, baskets, mats
etc and in paper making[4, 46, 61, 74, 94, 115]. When used for paper making,
the stems are harvested in late summer or autumn when they are two thirds
yellow and are then retted[189]. The fibre is then stripped from the stem,
cooked for two hours or more with lye and then beaten in a Hollander
beater[189].
Cultivation details
Prefers a light dry well-drained moderately fertile humus-rich soil in
a sunny sheltered position[200]. Prefers an alkaline soil. Established plants
are drought tolerant[190].
A very ornamental plant[1], it is not generally very long-lived though it
normally self-sows freely[190].
The sub-species lewisii (which is seen as a separate species by some
botanists or as no more than a synonym of this species by others) is more
desirable for its fibre and has been cultivated by the N. American Indians
for this purpose[155].
Propagation
Seed - sow spring in greenhouse. When they are large enough to handle,
prick the seedlings out into individual pots and plant them out in the
summer.
Basal cuttings in spring. Harvest the shoots when they are about 8 - 10cm
long with plenty of underground stem. Pot them up into individual pots and
keep them in light shade in a cold frame or greenhouse until they are rooting
well. Plant them out in the summer.
Suppliers
For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.
Web References
- Details of Medicinal Uses, Habitats, etc. in M. Grieve A Modern Herbal (1931) [4]
- [H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database
- [E] Ethnobotany Data
(common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.
- [B] Data
(Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
- [G] Data
(Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
- [P] Data.
(uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
- [HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database
References for Linum lewisii (a possible synonym).
References for Linum perenne subsp. lewisii (a possible synonym).
- [H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database
References for the family Linaceae.
See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.
Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.
[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).
[4] Grieve. A Modern Herbal. Penguin 1984 ISBN 0-14-046-440-9
Not so modern (1930's?) but lots of information, mainly temperate plants.
[46] Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959
An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.
[60] Hitchcock. C. L. Vascular Plants of the Pacific Northwest. University of Washington Press 1955
A standard flora for Western N. America with lots of information on habitat etc. Five large volumes, it is not for the casual reader.
[61] Usher. G. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable 1974 ISBN 0094579202
Forget the sexist title, this is one of the best books on the subject. Lists a very extensive range of useful plants from around the world with very brief details of the uses. Not for the casual reader.
[74] Komarov. V. L. Flora of the USSR. Israel Program for Scientific Translation 1968
An immense (25 or more large volumes) and not yet completed translation of the Russian flora. Full of information on plant uses and habitats but heavy going for casual readers.
[94] Sweet. M. Common Edible and Useful Plants of the West. Naturegraph Co. 1962 ISBN 0-911010-54-8
Useful wild plants in Western N. America. A pocket guide.
[115] Johnson. C. P. The Useful Plants of Great Britain.
Written about a hundred years ago, but still a very good guide to the useful plants of Britain.
[155] Arnberger. L. P. Flowers of the Southwest Mountains. Southwestern Monuments Ass. 1968
A lovely little pocket guide to wild plants in the southern Rockies of America.
[161] Yanovsky. E. Food Plants of the N. American Indians. Publication no. 237. U.S. Depf of Agriculture.
A comprehensive but very terse guide. Not for the casual reader.
[178] Stuart. Rev. G. A. Chinese Materia Medica. Taipei. Southern Materials Centre
A translation of an ancient Chinese herbal. Fascinating.
[183] Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9
Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.
[189] Bell. L. A. Plant Fibres for Papermaking. Liliaceae Press 1988
A good practical section on how to make paper on a small scale plus details of about 75 species (quite a few of them tropical) that can be used.
[190] Chatto. B. The Dry Garden. Dent 1982 ISBN 0460045512
A good list of drought resistant plants with details on how to grow them.
[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
[213] Weiner. M. A. Earth Medicine, Earth Food. Ballantine Books 1980 ISBN 0-449-90589-6
A nice book to read though it is difficult to look up individual plants since the book is divided into separate sections dealing with the different medicinal uses plus a section on edible plants. Common names are used instead of botanical.
[240] Chopra. R. N., Nayar. S. L. and Chopra. I. C. Glossary of Indian Medicinal Plants (Including the Supplement). Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi. 1986
Very terse details of medicinal uses of plants with a wide range of references and details of research into the plants chemistry. Not for the casual reader.
[244] Phillips. R. & Foy. N. Herbs Pan Books Ltd. London. 1990 ISBN 0-330-30725-8
Deals with all types of herbs including medicinal, culinary, scented and dye plants. Excellent photographs with quite good information on each plant.
[257] Moerman. D. Native American Ethnobotany Timber Press. Oregon. 1998 ISBN 0-88192-453-9
Very comprehensive but terse guide to the native uses of plants. Excellent bibliography, fully referenced to each plant, giving a pathway to further information. Not for the casual reader.
Readers Comments
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Bibliography
Plant information taken from the
Plants For A Future -
Species Database.
Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
WEB search engine by Rich Morris - Home Page- Contact Info
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