Phormium tenax Rainbow Maiden - New Zealand Flax

Phormium 'Rainbow Maiden', also known as New Zealand Flax and Flax Lily, bears foliage adorned with the soft hues of the setting sun. This beautiful perennial forms a dense clump of wide, gracefully arching ribbon-like foliage, which is bronze-green variegated with salmon pink and dark red. This evergreen plant offers a distinctly exotic look to the garden throughout the year, including its summer flowering with erect spikes adorned with highly nectar-rich tubular flowers. This fairly recent variety has moderate growth. It thrives in mild climates and is hardy down to about -7° C (19.4° F). Whether planted individually or in a mass planting, this visually striking plant is ideal for coastal regions. It will also thrive in a large container, to be overwintered in cool climates.

'Rainbow Maiden' belongs to the Asphodelaceae family. It is a compact form derived from Phormium tenax, the larger of the two New Zealand species. This superb rhizomatous perennial grows in a non-spreading clump. With an upright and arching habit, it reaches a height of about 90 cm (35.4 in) depending on growing conditions, with a spread of 1 m to 1.2 m (3.3 ft to 3.9 ft). The leaves are up to 10 cm (3.9 in) wide, slightly arching, very long, somewhat stiff, and pointed at the tips, with a bronze-green colour tinged with dark red and salmon pink, turning more yellow towards the end of the season and in winter. Flowering stems, at least 1.5 m (4.9 ft) tall, appear from May to July, depending on the climate, towering above the foliage clump. They are green tinged with purple, in the form of curved tube-shaped flowers that take on a more or less bright red hue at maturity. This flowering attracts certain birds and many pollinating insects.

This Phormium has great ornamental value, suitable for large beds or large rockeries in mild climates. Used individually or planted in groups, it structures the space and adds a distinctly exotic charm to the garden. Like tall grasses, it is also a wonderful perennial for a modern garden with clean lines. In colder regions, it can be planted in a large pot on a terrace or balcony, to admire its elegance during the growing season, and overwintered frost-free in a cool greenhouse or unheated conservatory. In an urban garden, it softens concrete structures. For an exotic and contrasting ambiance, it can be paired, for example, with Leptospermum scoparium, a pink to red ball-shaped flower in summer, Helichrysum rosmarinifolium 'Silver Jubilee', Pittosporum tenuifolium 'Tom Thumb', or even Olearia macrodonta 'Major'.

Phormiums produce fibres which are used in the textile industry. This is probably where the vernacular name 'New Zealand Flax' comes from.