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Home > Products > New Zealand Flax > 'Phormium Dazzler'
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Phormium Dazzler planted in San Marcos Growers garden |
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A slightly arching 3 feet tall plant with 1 1/2" wide leaves that are striped with deep maroon and scarlet. Old leaves will fade and lose striping but the new leaves always retain the vivid color that gives this plant its name. The reddest of the Flax and one of the smallest of the brightly
colored hybrids. This plant was first described in 1973 in the Royal Horticultural Society Yearbook of Lilies and other Liliaceae. It was introduced by Mr. R. Jordon of Australasian Nurseries in Pakuranga, New Zealand. It has also been known under the names P. cookianum 'Dazzler',Hort., P. tenax 'Dazzler',Hort., P. 'Red Stripe',Hort. and P. cookianum 'Red Stripe',Hort.
The beauty of this plant is only matched by the difficulty it has shown to be propagated in sufficient quantities. Several years ago this prompted Monrovia Nursery Company in Azusa, California to attempt to propagate Phormium 'Dazzler' by tissue culture. In the process the red variegation was lost and the subsequent plants (w/o red striping) were given the name Phormium tenax 'Atropurpureum Compacta'. This name has been determined to be invalid because of the use of a latinized varietal name and because the original plant was not a P. tenax cultivar. In honor of the nursery that created this cultivar San Marcos Growers calls this plant Phormium 'Monrovia Red'.
More New Zealand Flax in the garden
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