Perennials, Tropicals > Phormium > Phormium tenax > Phormium tenax
Phormium tenax
New Zealand Flax
Origin: Native to New Zealand.
| Family |
| Xanthorrhoeaceae |
| Genus |
| Phormium |
| Species |
| tenax |
| Category |
| Perennials, Tropicals |
| Type |
| Shrub (evergreen) |
| Height |
| 2.5- 5 m |
Photographs
Cultivars
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Description and Growing Information
Flowering Period
| Landscape |
| Typically used as a vey strong architectural plant and often used near salt water and as a mass planting in borders and parking lots the plant has many other traditional uses. The fibres extracted from the leaves were used by the Măoris of New Zealand for baskets, mats and soft ceremonial gowns often dyed various earth tones with the pigments extracted from the plants flowers. The leaves could be used for sails and rigging that allowed inter-island travel while the hollow stems could be bundled together to construct the rafts themselves. The fibres are resistant to salt water and thus were also woven into fishing nets. The roots may be used to brew an alcoholic drink that is sweetened with the nectar from the flowers. The leaves are purported to contain antimicrobial properties and blood-clotting enzymes and thus the fibres were often used as sutures for war wounds incurred in tribal and colonial skirmishes. |
| Growth |
| Medium |
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