Flax (Phormium) Tricolor
One of my most favourite texture plants in the garden is this beautiful hybrid phormium, or flax, called Tricolor. Lucky me - I bought two, both from the three dollar bargain bin at the local nursery. They have the most beautiful coloured stripes.
striped detail on Phormium tricolor
Nothing bugs flaxes in my garden. Flax leaves don't seem to ever get eaten (unlike expensive variegated cordylines). Wind doesn't worry them, sun doesn't scorch them, rain doesn't get them. Snow (which we get rarely) flattens them, but they bounce back. For British gardeners they are described as half hardy - they may be in Britain, but not here in their homeland.
Phormium Tricolor
For me flaxes are quite easy-going about their growing circumstances - they don't really mind being root bound, or stuck in a planting bag for ages, or stashed out of sight behind the glass-house and discovered months later. They can grow in a big pot, but are happier planted in the garden. But they can quickly become really big and bulky.
Concerning longevity...
Oops. My two Tricolors started to break apart after fifteen happy years - mainly because of the heavy weight of each year's flowering stems. As with other Phormiums, it's easy to chop them down to ground level and wait for regrowth. Smaller divisions can also be sliced off and replanted. That's what I've always done.
Phormium Tricolor
Tricolor is a Phormium cookianum hybrid with arching leaves of green and creamy yellow with red edges. The flowers appear from mid-spring, and provide nectar for bellbirds. Love those beautiful birds!