phormium
noun
any plant of the New Zealand bulbous genus Phormium, with leathery evergreen leaves and red or yellow flowers in panicles
Word Origin for phormium
New Latin, from Greek phormos a basket (from a use for the fibres)
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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Examples from the Web for phormium
Historical Examples of phormium
It contains a Phormium tenax that I wouldn't lose on any account.
Major VigoureuxA. T. Quiller-Couch
New Zealand flax (Phormium tenax), a kind of marsh hemp, yields a fibre used in making cordage.
Commercial GeographyJacques W. Redway
The slave girls stick unthreshed slips of the Phormium tenax in their skirts, thus giving immoderate fulness to their bodies.
The Human RaceLouis Figuier
The robes of New Zealand flax (Phormium tenax), and especially the feather robes, evince their aptitude and taste.
The more important fibres of this class are manila, sisal, phormium.