Blue Flax

Wild Blue Flax
(Linum Lewisii)

Flax has been used by people all over the world since primitive times because of the strength of its fibers. The fibers are used for string and cords, and for weaving cloth. The fabric that is woven from flax is linen. The genus name, Linum is taken from this word. Domestic flax, which is grown commercially, has a white blossom, but otherwise is similar to the plant shown in the photos. The blue species shown here is named after Captain Meriwether Lewis, of the Lewis and Clark expedition.

It grows about two feet tall on the sides of roads and on exposed hillsides, and can be found from the foothills to the tops of the canyons in the Wasatch Mountains.