Internet Colors - Set of 1035

Flax Color 361 - #EEDC82

Linum usitatissimum - Flax (also known as linseed) is a food and fiber crop that is grown in cooler regions of the world. Flax fibers are taken from the stem of the plant and are two to three times as strong as those of cotton. As well, flax fibers are naturally smooth and straight. Europe and North America depended on flax for cloth until the nineteenth century, when cotton overtook flax as the most common plant used for making linen paper.

Flax is grown on the Canadian Prairies for linseed oil, which is used as a drying oil in paints and varnish and in products such as linoleum and printing inks. A discovery reported of spun, dyed, and knotted wild flax fibers in a prehistoric cave shows that the plant was already in use by humans at the early date of 30,000 BC.

Flax seeds contain high levels of dietary fiber as well as lignans, an abundance of micronutrients and omega-3 fatty acids. Studies have shown that flax seeds may lower cholesterol levels.