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Mountain flax, a clump-forming perennial native to New Zealand, closely related to harakeke (P. tenax). It is grown for its sword-like leaves and its twisted seed pods, and is tolerant of cool, exposed conditions.
Phormium colensoi (syn. Phormium cookianum – see below), also called mountain flax, or wharariki in Māori, is a perennial plant that is endemic to New Zealand. The greenish, yellow or orange flowers are followed by twisted seed pods. It is less common than the other Phormium species, P. tenax or harakeke. Mountain flax is also known as whararipi, whatariki, mangaeka, kōrari tuauru (Williams 1971), wauraki (Bell 1890 sic.), coastal flax, hill flax and lesser New Zealand flax.
Wharariki is a taonga (sacred, treasure) species to Māori and numerous traditional cultivars have been used for various purposes. Refer to Ngā Tipu Whakaoranga [Māōri Plant Use Database] and the citations within and Te Kohinga Harakeke o Aotearoa – National New Zealand Flax Collection.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Phormium colensoi by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
