Properties are '[x|y]color'
doc set
doc axes % see properties available
May be a method in newer releases besides set as well.
Note you can use
hAx=axes; % create an axes object, return handle
set(hAx) % set without a parameter pair will return all and current/default values
The above is an easy way to find what properties are available for any object and a concise listing of current values that can look through for such things as you're trying to find here. Look for likely candidates for something related to what property it is you're trying to modify.
