Hawaiian Ecosystems at Risk project (HEAR)

Phormium tenax
(Agavaceae)
New Zealand flax, New Zealand hemp, bush flax

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New Zealand flax (Phormium tenax) is a plant up to 6 feet tall with smooth, leathery, sword-shaped leaves that grow clumped in a fan shape.  (source)Native to New Zealand, Phormium tenax was introduced to Hawaiian Islands as an ornamental plant in the late 1800s. It was introduced to Molokai in the late 1960s or early 1970s. 

Species description or overview

Report on Phormium tenax as an invasive species on The Nature Conservancy of Hawaii's (TNCH's) Kamakou Preserve (Molokai) View info about Adobe Acrobat PDF format
A report of Phormium tenax as an invasive species on Kamakou Preserve (Molokai) by The Nature Conservancy of Hawaii is available online.

Phormium tenax information from PIER
Information on Phormium tenax as relevant to Pacific Islands is provided by the Pacific Island Ecosystems at Risk project (PIER).

Taxonomy & nomenclature

GRIN nomenclature info for Phormium tenax
Nomenclatural information about Phormium tenax is provided by USDA/ARS/NGRP/GRIN.

ITIS nomenclature info for Phormium tenax
Nomenclatural information about Phormium tenax is provided by ITIS.

IPNI nomenclature info for Phormium tenax
Nomenclatural information about Phormium tenax is provided by The International Plant Names Index (IPNI).

Impacts

Report on Phormium tenax as an invasive species on The Nature Conservancy of Hawaii's (TNCH's) Kamakou Preserve (Molokai) View info about Adobe Acrobat PDF format
A report of Phormium tenax as an invasive species on Kamakou Preserve (Molokai) by The Nature Conservancy of Hawaii is available online.

Phormium tenax (Agavaceae): species information from GCW
Information on Phormium tenax as relevant to Pacific Islands is provided by the Global Compendium of Weeds (GCW).

Control methods

Report on Phormium tenax as an invasive species on The Nature Conservancy of Hawaii's (TNCH's) Kamakou Preserve (Molokai) View info about Adobe Acrobat PDF format
A report of Phormium tenax as an invasive species on Kamakou Preserve (Molokai) by The Nature Conservancy of Hawaii is available online.

Images

Images of Phormium tenax (Agavaceae) (New Zealand flax)
Links to high-resolution free images of Phormium tenax (Agavaceae) (New Zealand flax) by Forest & Kim Starr (USGS) are available here.

Smithsonian Flora of the Hawaiian Islands info for Phormium tenax
Smithsonian Flora of the Hawaiian Islands (Wagner, W. L., D. R. Herbst, and D. H. Lorence. 2005-. Flora of the Hawaiian Islands website. http://ravenel.si.edu/botany/pacificislandbiodiversity/hawaiianflora/index.htm [accessed Apr 2006])

Phormium tenax images from PIER
Images of Phormium tenax provided by the Pacific Island Ecosystems at Risk project (PIER).

Distribution

Smithsonian Flora of the Hawaiian Islands info for Phormium tenax
Smithsonian Flora of the Hawaiian Islands (Wagner, W. L., D. R. Herbst, and D. H. Lorence. 2005-. Flora of the Hawaiian Islands website. http://ravenel.si.edu/botany/pacificislandbiodiversity/hawaiianflora/index.htm [accessed Apr 2006])

Plants of Hawaii: Phormium tenax -- MAPS
online

Invasive species in the Pacific: A technical review and draft regional strategy (2000) View info about Adobe Acrobat PDF format
The status of invasive plants, vertebrates, arthropods, molluscs, and crustaceans, and options for a regional invasive species strategy for the South Pacific are presented in this series of articles from the South Pacific Regional Environment Programme, 2000.

Books

Turning the tide: The eradication of invasive species (proceedings of the International Conference on Eradication of Island Invasives)  new posting 
Veitch, C.R. and M.N. Clout (eds.) 2002. Turning the tide: The eradication of invasive species (proceedings of the International Conference on Eradication of Island Invasives). IUCN SSC Invasive Species Specialist Group. IUCN, Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, UK. vii + 414pp. ISBN: 2-8317-0682-3. ISSN: (unknown or N/A).

Full-text articles

Alien plant invasions in native ecosystems of Hawaii: Management and research  new posting 
Stone, Charles P., Clifford W. Smith, and J. Timothy Tunison (eds.) 1992. Alien plant invasions in native ecosystems of Hawaii: Management and research. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Cooperative National Park Resources Studies Unit. ISBN: 0-8248-1474-6. ISSN: (unknown or N/A).

Invasive species in the Pacific: A technical review and draft regional strategy  new posting 
South Pacific Regional Environmental Programme (SPREP). Sherley, Greg (ed.) 2000. Invasive species in the Pacific: A technical review and draft regional strategy. Apia, Samoa: South Pacific Regional Environment Programme. ISBN: 982-04-0214-X. ISSN: (unknown or N/A).

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