Abstract
Two flax (Linum usitatissimum L.) mutants having reduced linolenic acid content in their seed oil (M1589 = 19.1% linolenic; M1722 = 23.4% linolenic) were crossed to determine whether further reductions could be achieved by recombination of the mutant genes. Extensive transgressive segregation was evident in the F2 for both linolenic acid (1.2–36.6%) and linoleic acid (14.7–55.2%), which were strongly negatively correlated (r = −0.97). F2 plants homozygous for both the M1589 and M1722 mutations had very low levels of linolenic acid (46%).Key words: Flax, linseed, Linum usitatissimum, linoleic acid, linolenic acid, seed oil