Taxon: Linum lewisii Pursh

Summary

Genus:

Linum

Family:

Linaceae

Subfamily:

Linoideae

Nomen number:

22342

Place of publication:

Fl. Amer. sept. 1:210. 1813

Protologue link:

https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/396628

Comment:

for date of this publication see Taxon 57:305. 2008

Verified:

05/08/1992 ARS Systematic Botanists.

Accessions:

54 (50 active, 43 available) in National Plant Germplasm System. (Map it)

Other conspecific taxa

Linum lewisii Pursh var. alpicola Jeps. (0 active accession[s])
Linum lewisii Pursh var. lepagei (B. Boivin) C. M. Rogers (0 active accession[s])
Linum lewisii Pursh var. lewisii (4 active accession[s])

Autonyms (not in current use), synonyms and invalid designations

Images (1 total. Click on image for more.)

Links

Forestry Images – from www.forestryimages.org

Conservation Status

Reference(s)

Baldwin, B. G. et al., eds. The Jepson manual: vascular plants of California (on-line resource).
Cody, W. J. 1996. Flora of the Yukon Territory.
Cronquist, A. et al. 1972-. Intermountain flora.
Diggs, G. M., Jr. et al. 1999. Shinner's and Mahler's illustrated flora of North Central Texas. Note: mentions
Englert, J. M. et al. 1999-. USDA-NRCS Improved conservation plant materials released by NRCS and cooperators
Hickman, J. C., ed. 1993. The Jepson manual: higher plants of California
Hitchcock, C. L. et al. 1955-1969. Vascular plants of the Pacific Northwest. Note: = Linum perenne subsp. lewisii (Pursh) Eaton & Wright
Kingsbury, J. M. 1964. Poisonous plants of the United States and Canada.
Liberty Hyde Bailey Hortorium. 1976. Hortus third. A concise dictionary of plants cultivated in the United States and Canada Note: = Linum perenne subsp. lewisii (Pursh) Hultén
Martin, W. C. & C. R. Hutchins. 1980. A flora of New Mexico.
McDill, J. et al. 2009. The phylogeny of Linum and Linaceae subfamily Linoideae, with implications for their systematics, biogeography, and evolution of heterostyly. Syst. Bot. 34:386-405. www.aspt.net/systematic-botany
McGregor, R. L. et al. (The Great Plains Flora Association). 1986. Flora of the Great Plains. Note: = Linum perenne var. lewisii (Pursh) Eaton & Wright
Pendleton, R. L. et al. 2008. Origin of the flax cultivar 'Appar' and its position within the Linum perenne complex. Int. J. Pl. Sci. 169:445-453. Note: places with Linum perenne, and not L. lewisii
Porcher, M. H. et al. Searchable World Wide Web Multilingual Multiscript Plant Name Database (MMPND) (on-line resource).
Rogers, C. M. 1984. Linaceae. In: Britton, N. L. et al., eds. ser. 1; C. T. Rogerson, ed. ser. 2, North American flora ser. 2, 12:8. Note: ser. 1, 1905-1957; ser. 2, 1954-1972
Shreve, F. & I. L. Wiggins. 1964. Vegetation and flora of the Sonoran desert.
Strausbaugh, T. D. & E. L. Core. 1978. Flora of West Virginia, ed. 2.
Welsh, S. L. et al. 1993. A Utah flora. Note: = Linum perenne subsp. lewisii (Pursh) Hultén
Wiggins, I. L. 1980. Flora of Baja California.
Yurkevich, O. Y. et al. 2013. Investigation of genome polymorphism and seed coat anatomy of species of section Adenolinum from the genus Linum. Genet. Resources Crop Evol. 60:661-676. Note: this study revealed that almost all species in section Adenolinum share similar karyotype and rRNA gene location; analysis of genetic similarity based on RAPD data showed Linum lewisii apart from Eurasian - Central Asian species
1961. Webster's third new international dictionary.

Common names

Language	Name	seq	Citation
English	Lewis's flax	1	Diggs, G. M., Jr. et al. 1999. Shinner's and Mahler's illustrated flora of North Central Texas. Note: mentions
English	prairie flax	1	1961. Webster's third new international dictionary.
English	wild blue flax	1	Cronquist, A. et al. 1972-. Intermountain flora.

Distribution

order_code	Status	Continent	Subcontinent	Country	State	Note	Reference
1	Native	Northern America	Eastern Canada	Canada	Ontario	n.	Jhala, A. J. et al. 2008. Potential hybridization of flax with weedy and wild relatives: an avenue for movement of engineered genes? Crop Sci. (Madison) 48:825-840. Note: this review cited Linum lewisii Pursh as a n=9 species; this review commented "karyotype plays an important role in interspecific hybridization in Linum species", since flax is n=15 then it "seems less likely to outcross with cultivated flax"
1	Native	Northern America	Eastern Canada	Canada	Québec	w.	Jhala, A. J. et al. 2008. Potential hybridization of flax with weedy and wild relatives: an avenue for movement of engineered genes? Crop Sci. (Madison) 48:825-840. Note: this review cited Linum lewisii Pursh as a n=9 species; this review commented "karyotype plays an important role in interspecific hybridization in Linum species", since flax is n=15 then it "seems less likely to outcross with cultivated flax"
1	Native	Northern America	North-Central U.S.A.	United States	North Dakota		McGregor, R. L. et al. (The Great Plains Flora Association). 1986. Flora of the Great Plains. Note: = Linum perenne var. lewisii (Pursh) Eaton & Wright
1	Native	Northern America	North-Central U.S.A.	United States	South Dakota	w.	McGregor, R. L. et al. (The Great Plains Flora Association). 1986. Flora of the Great Plains. Note: = Linum perenne var. lewisii (Pursh) Eaton & Wright
1	Native	Northern America	Northeastern U.S.A.	United States	West Virginia		Strausbaugh, T. D. & E. L. Core. 1978. Flora of West Virginia, ed. 2.
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Baja California (Norte)		Wiggins, I. L. 1980. Flora of Baja California.
1	Native	Northern America	Northwestern U.S.A.	United States	Colorado		Jhala, A. J. et al. 2008. Potential hybridization of flax with weedy and wild relatives: an avenue for movement of engineered genes? Crop Sci. (Madison) 48:825-840. Note: this review cited Linum lewisii Pursh as a n=9 species; this review commented "karyotype plays an important role in interspecific hybridization in Linum species", since flax is n=15 then it "seems less likely to outcross with cultivated flax"
1	Native	Northern America	Northwestern U.S.A.	United States	Idaho		Hitchcock, C. L. et al. 1955-1969. Vascular plants of the Pacific Northwest. Note: = Linum perenne subsp. lewisii (Pursh) Eaton & Wright
1	Native	Northern America	Northwestern U.S.A.	United States	Montana		Jhala, A. J. et al. 2008. Potential hybridization of flax with weedy and wild relatives: an avenue for movement of engineered genes? Crop Sci. (Madison) 48:825-840. Note: this review cited Linum lewisii Pursh as a n=9 species; this review commented "karyotype plays an important role in interspecific hybridization in Linum species", since flax is n=15 then it "seems less likely to outcross with cultivated flax"
1	Native	Northern America	Northwestern U.S.A.	United States	Oregon		Hitchcock, C. L. et al. 1955-1969. Vascular plants of the Pacific Northwest. Note: = Linum perenne subsp. lewisii (Pursh) Eaton & Wright
1	Native	Northern America	Northwestern U.S.A.	United States	Washington		Hitchcock, C. L. et al. 1955-1969. Vascular plants of the Pacific Northwest. Note: = Linum perenne subsp. lewisii (Pursh) Eaton & Wright
1	Native	Northern America	Northwestern U.S.A.	United States	Wyoming		Jhala, A. J. et al. 2008. Potential hybridization of flax with weedy and wild relatives: an avenue for movement of engineered genes? Crop Sci. (Madison) 48:825-840. Note: this review cited Linum lewisii Pursh as a n=9 species; this review commented "karyotype plays an important role in interspecific hybridization in Linum species", since flax is n=15 then it "seems less likely to outcross with cultivated flax"
1	Native	Northern America	South-Central U.S.A.	United States	New Mexico		Martin, W. C. & C. R. Hutchins. 1980. A flora of New Mexico.
1	Native	Northern America	South-Central U.S.A.	United States	Texas		Diggs, G. M., Jr. et al. 1999. Shinner's and Mahler's illustrated flora of North Central Texas. Note: mentions
1	Native	Northern America	Southwestern U.S.A.	United States	Arizona
1	Native	Northern America	Southwestern U.S.A.	United States	California	s.	Hickman, J. C., ed. 1993. The Jepson manual: higher plants of California
1	Native	Northern America	Southwestern U.S.A.	United States	Nevada		Cronquist, A. et al. 1972-. Intermountain flora.
1	Native	Northern America	Southwestern U.S.A.	United States	Utah		Welsh, S. L. et al. 1993. A Utah flora. Note: = Linum perenne subsp. lewisii (Pursh) Hultén
1	Native	Northern America	Subarctic America	Canada	Northwest Territories	w.	Jhala, A. J. et al. 2008. Potential hybridization of flax with weedy and wild relatives: an avenue for movement of engineered genes? Crop Sci. (Madison) 48:825-840. Note: this review cited Linum lewisii Pursh as a n=9 species; this review commented "karyotype plays an important role in interspecific hybridization in Linum species", since flax is n=15 then it "seems less likely to outcross with cultivated flax"
1	Native	Northern America	Subarctic America	Canada	Yukon		Jhala, A. J. et al. 2008. Potential hybridization of flax with weedy and wild relatives: an avenue for movement of engineered genes? Crop Sci. (Madison) 48:825-840. Note: this review cited Linum lewisii Pursh as a n=9 species; this review commented "karyotype plays an important role in interspecific hybridization in Linum species", since flax is n=15 then it "seems less likely to outcross with cultivated flax"
1	Native	Northern America	Subarctic America	United States	Alaska
1	Native	Northern America	Western Canada	Canada	Alberta		Jhala, A. J. et al. 2008. Potential hybridization of flax with weedy and wild relatives: an avenue for movement of engineered genes? Crop Sci. (Madison) 48:825-840. Note: this review cited Linum lewisii Pursh as a n=9 species; this review commented "karyotype plays an important role in interspecific hybridization in Linum species", since flax is n=15 then it "seems less likely to outcross with cultivated flax"
1	Native	Northern America	Western Canada	Canada	British Columbia		Jhala, A. J. et al. 2008. Potential hybridization of flax with weedy and wild relatives: an avenue for movement of engineered genes? Crop Sci. (Madison) 48:825-840. Note: this review cited Linum lewisii Pursh as a n=9 species; this review commented "karyotype plays an important role in interspecific hybridization in Linum species", since flax is n=15 then it "seems less likely to outcross with cultivated flax"
1	Native	Northern America	Western Canada	Canada	Manitoba		Jhala, A. J. et al. 2008. Potential hybridization of flax with weedy and wild relatives: an avenue for movement of engineered genes? Crop Sci. (Madison) 48:825-840. Note: this review cited Linum lewisii Pursh as a n=9 species; this review commented "karyotype plays an important role in interspecific hybridization in Linum species", since flax is n=15 then it "seems less likely to outcross with cultivated flax"
1	Native	Northern America	Western Canada	Canada	Saskatchewan		Jhala, A. J. et al. 2008. Potential hybridization of flax with weedy and wild relatives: an avenue for movement of engineered genes? Crop Sci. (Madison) 48:825-840. Note: this review cited Linum lewisii Pursh as a n=9 species; this review commented "karyotype plays an important role in interspecific hybridization in Linum species", since flax is n=15 then it "seems less likely to outcross with cultivated flax"

Native
Northern America

SUBARCTIC AMERICA: Canada [Northwest Territories (w.), Yukon], United States [Alaska]
EASTERN CANADA: Canada [Québec (w.), Ontario (n.)]
WESTERN CANADA: Canada [Saskatchewan, Alberta, Manitoba, British Columbia]
NORTHEASTERN U.S.A.: United States [West Virginia]
NORTH-CENTRAL U.S.A.: United States [North Dakota, South Dakota (w.)]
NORTHWESTERN U.S.A.: United States [Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, Wyoming]
SOUTH-CENTRAL U.S.A.: United States [New Mexico, Texas]
SOUTHWESTERN U.S.A.: United States [Arizona, California (s.), Nevada, Utah]
NORTHERN MEXICO: Mexico [Baja California (Norte)]

Reference(s)

Cronquist, A. et al. 1972-. Intermountain flora.
Diggs, G. M., Jr. et al. 1999. Shinner's and Mahler's illustrated flora of North Central Texas. Note: mentions
Hickman, J. C., ed. 1993. The Jepson manual: higher plants of California
Hitchcock, C. L. et al. 1955-1969. Vascular plants of the Pacific Northwest. Note: = Linum perenne subsp. lewisii (Pursh) Eaton & Wright
Jhala, A. J. et al. 2008. Potential hybridization of flax with weedy and wild relatives: an avenue for movement of engineered genes? Crop Sci. (Madison) 48:825-840. Note: this review cited Linum lewisii Pursh as a n=9 species; this review commented "karyotype plays an important role in interspecific hybridization in Linum species", since flax is n=15 then it "seems less likely to outcross with cultivated flax"
Martin, W. C. & C. R. Hutchins. 1980. A flora of New Mexico.
McGregor, R. L. et al. (The Great Plains Flora Association). 1986. Flora of the Great Plains. Note: = Linum perenne var. lewisii (Pursh) Eaton & Wright
Strausbaugh, T. D. & E. L. Core. 1978. Flora of West Virginia, ed. 2.
Welsh, S. L. et al. 1993. A Utah flora. Note: = Linum perenne subsp. lewisii (Pursh) Hultén
Wiggins, I. L. 1980. Flora of Baja California.

Economic Uses

Usage	Type	Note	Reference
Vertebrate poisons	mammals		Kingsbury, J. M. 1964. Poisonous plants of the United States and Canada.

Cite as: USDA, Agricultural Research Service, National Plant Germplasm System. 2026. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN Taxonomy). National Germplasm Resources Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland.
URL: https://npgstest.ars-grin.gov/gringlobal/taxon/taxonomydetail?id=22342. Accessed 17 April 2026.