Linum narbonense

The blue flax or Narbona flax (Linum narbonense) is a herbaceous plant of the family Linaceae, closely related to common flax (Linum usitatissimum). It is characteristic for its beautiful blue flower.

View of the plant

Detail of the flower

Description

L. narbonense is a perennial, erect, perennial, hairless herb that reaches 50 cm in height. Its leaves are alternate, lanceolate, marked by a single vein, sessile or barely stalked. The flowers are solitary, terminal, pentamerous, of a pale or bright blue colour, sometimes with longitudinal stripes of a lighter colour, reaching 2.5 cm in diameter; They appear shortly before the beginning of summer.

It grows wild in the Iberian Peninsula and the Balearic Islands, in bushes and well-sunny thyme groves, or as undergrowth in pine forests; It prefers limestone, slightly acidic, slightly humid soils, especially with good drainage. It is used as an ornamental thanks to its beauty and easy germination.

Ecology

It is the only host for the larvae of Coleophora benedictella.

Taxonomy

Linum narbonense was described by Carlos Linnaeus and published in Sp. Pl. 278 1753.

Etymology

Linum: generic name derived from the Greek word: "linum" = "linen" used by Theophrastus.

narbonense: geographical epithet that alludes to its location in Narbonne.

Sinonimia

• Linum reflexum Aiton [1789]
• Linum barrasii Pau [1894]
• Linum paniculatum Moench [1802]
• Linum acuminatum Moench

Common names

• Castellano: bells, knight spade, flax, linen (8), blue linen (9), wild blue linen, blue linen, bravo linen (10), purple linen, wild linen, wild linen similar to hortense.(The number in parentheses indicates the species that have the same name in Spain)