Blue flax (Linum perenne) was a common plant to see when I first moved to Albuquerque. It's funny that it isn't seen that much anymore. Perhaps it's because it is a short lived plant, a single plant not lasting more than a few seasons. But it does self seed, from what I understand. I had forgotten about blue flax until I saw a plant in a friend's garden last year, and thought to myself, "Why don't I have that in my garden?!".
So last year, I planted this variety 'Appar', which was available at High Country Gardens. It's supposed to be a darker blue. Planted March 30, 2019, it didn't do much that first summer, and I didn't expect a newly planted perennial to do much. It didn't look great, rather weedy in fact, but didn't seem to look any different if I forgot to water it, and I forgot to water it for weeks after the initial planting. After that, I didn't really bother. It formed a tuft of leaves and a few longer stems by the end of summer. During the winter, it froze back a little, and when it started growing again, I pruned the damaged lanky stems back to the basal tuft.
As the flower stems and buds developed, I appreciated the fountain form, the buds and the ends of the flower stems drooping dramatically.
The first bloom opened April 9, impressed me with the silky texture of the flowers. It still has a rather weedy appearance, but now, three weeks later, it has the light texture of a blue cloud that is hovering above the ground. Flowers last only one day or less, fading with the heat of the afternoon, and are without fragrance. They do stay open through the afternoon if the weather is cool and cloudy.
Am I happy with it? Would I want more in the garden? Will I allow it to self seed? Probably. The durability and ease of growing it is something that I appreciate, although if it self-seeds too much, I may regret it. Still, that true blue color and long season of flowering so far, is impressive. But the rather scraggly appearance of the plant without blooms is something to deal with in using it in the garden. I just learned that this is not a native plant as I originally thought, coming from Europe. If it were invasive though, I would have thought that it would have been found to be so by now, having been grown here in gardens for decades.
