FLAX FAMILY
Reading edition
Blue Flax Linum perenne
Plate 7, fig. 1
The delicate blue flowers of the Flax open soon after sunrise, and the petals drop late in the morning, so that the plant is hardly noticeable for the rest of the day. The plants are found on the plains and in the foothills at 5000-10000 ft. and bloom all summer. The Blue Flax is grown in gardens for ornamental purposes and is cultivated by the Indians for the sake of its remarkably strong fibres. The Klamath Indians make these into string and cords which are then used in baskets and mats, fish nets, the meshes of snow-shoes, etc. General cultivation of this native species has not proven profitable, however, since the common flax excels it both in fibre and in seeds, and is commercially one of our most useful plants.