White Meadowsweet vs Blue Flax - TreeTime.ca

White Meadowsweet vs Blue Flax

Linum lewisii

Spiraea alba

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Blue Flax
White Meadowsweet

Blue Flax is a native perennial wildflower known for its blue to violet flowers. Each flower lasts just a single day, but new blooms appear continuously, providing weeks of colour. This extended flowering period provides a reliable display from late spring into summer and attracts a variety of pollinators.

They can self-seed readily, so removing spent blooms helps manage their spread. Birds feed on the seeds, and when cooked, they are edible and are described as having a mild, nutty flavour. The plant grows in loose clumps with slender stems and fine foliage. Young plants are leafy, but as they mature, most leaves are shed.

Blue Flax grows well in a wide range of soils, including poor or sandy conditions, and is drought-tolerant once established. The deep root system helps to stabilize soil and prevent erosion. They are well-suited for pollinator gardens, restoration, naturalization, and xeriscaping projects.

As a perennial, it dies back to the crown each winter, it will regrow from the base in the spring. Avoid disturbing the crown during late winter to ensure healthy growth the following season.

White Meadowsweet is a woody, deciduous shrub that begins to bloom in early summer with small white and pink flowers. Its foliage turns from a light green into an attractive golden-yellow later in the fall.

The White Meadowsweet, also known as Mead-Wort or Bride-Wort, is favored by birds and butterflies but is largely ignored by deer. They produce small brown berries in the summer, and while they are technically edible, they are not sweet and are more desired by wildlife.

Blue Flax Quick Facts

White Meadowsweet Quick Facts

Zone: 3a
Zone: 3a
Height: 0.6 m (2.0 ft)
Height: 1.2 m (4 ft)
Spread: 0.3 m (1.0 ft)
Spread: 0.9 m (3 ft)
Light: partial shade, full sun
Light: partial shade, full sun
Moisture: dry, normal
Moisture: normal, wet
Growth rate: fast
Growth rate: fast
Life span: short
Life span: short
Growth form: upright, rounded, clump-forming
Spreading: seeds - high
Suckering: high
Maintenance: medium

Toxicity: toxic to some animals, raw seed toxic

Fall colour: golden yellow
Flowers: pale to deep blue-violet
Flowers: white, small
Bloom time: late spring to mid summer
Hybrid: no
Hybrid: no
Catkins: no
Catkins: no


Other Names: lewis flax, lewis wild blue flax, prairie flax, wild blue flax
Other Names: mead wort, meadowsweet, narrowleaf meadowsweet, pale bridewort, pipestem