| New Zealand flax | |
|---|---|
| |
| Phormium tenax in bloom in Piha, West Auckland, New Zealand | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Monocots |
| Order: | Asparagales |
| Family: | Asphodelaceae |
| Subfamily: | Hemerocallidoideae |
| Genus: | Phormium J.R. Forst. & G. Forst. |
| Type species | |
| Phormium tenax | |
| Species | |
Phormium is a genus of two plant species in the family Asphodelaceae. One species is endemic to New Zealand and the other is native to New Zealand and Norfolk Island.[1] The two species are widely known in New Zealand as flax or their Māori names wharariki and harakeke respectively, and elsewhere as New Zealand flax or flax lily, but they are not closely related to the Northern Hemisphere's flax (Linum usitatissimum), which is native to the region extending from the eastern Mediterranean to India and has been used by humans since 30,000 B.C.[2][3]
- ^ Moore, L.B.; Edgar, E. (1970). Flora of New Zealand. Vol. II. Indigenous Tracheophyta: Monocotyledones except Gramineae. Wellington, N. Z.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^ Balter, M (2009). "Clothes make the (Hu) Man". Science. 325 (5946): 1329. doi:10.1126/science.325_1329a. PMID 19745126.
- ^ Kvavadze, E; Bar-Yosef, O; Belfer-Cohen, A; Boaretto, E; Jakeli, N; Matskevich, Z; Meshveliani, T (2009). "30,000-Year-Old Wild Flax Fibers". Science. 325 (5946): 1359. Bibcode:2009Sci...325.1359K. doi:10.1126/science.1175404. PMID 19745144. S2CID 206520793. Supporting Online Material