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in England, 

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The flovver-ftalks of this fort 



burunlefsthe autumn proves favourable, the feeds do | feafon for fowing of the Flax feed, the htnd mufl be 



v/ell ploughed, laid flat and even, upon which the 

 feeds Ihould be fown about the latter end of March, 

 or the beginning of April, v/hen the weather is mild 

 and warm. 



The common way is to fow the feed in broad-caft, 

 and to allow from tv/o to three buihels of feeds to one 

 acre of land; but from many repeated trials, I have 

 found it is a much better method to fow the feeds in 

 drills, at about ten inches diftance from each other, 

 - by which half the quantity of feed which is ufually 

 fown, will produce a greater crop •, and when the Flax 

 is thus fown, the ground may be eafily hoed to deftroy 

 the weeds ^ which, if tv/ice repeated in dry weather, 

 will keep the ground clean till the Flax is ripe : this 

 may be performed at half the cxpence which the hand 

 weeding will coft, and will not tread down the plants 

 nor harden the ground, v/hich by the other method is 

 always done •, and it is abfoluiely neceffary to keep the 

 Flax clean from weeds, otherwife they will overbear 

 and fpoil the crop. , ■ 



There are fome people who recommend the feeding 

 of flieep with Flax, when it is a good height j and 

 fay, they will eat away the weeds and Grafs, and do 

 the Flax good ; and if they fhould lie in it, and beat 

 it down or flatten it, it v/ill rife again the next rain : 



not npen 



decay in the autumn, but the lower fl^rubby flalk 

 continues with the other branches all the year. 

 The twelfth fort grows naturally upon the Alps ; this 

 hath a perennial root, from whence arife two or three 

 flender ftiff ftalks, which divide at the top into tv/o 

 or three (lender branches, garniflied with fpcar-fhaped 

 leaves placed alternately. The flowers come out 

 fingly at the joints, and fit clofe to the ftalks ; their 

 cmpalements are cut into five flender fegrnents, 

 which are longer than the petals of the flower. The 

 flowers are yellow, and appear about the farne time 

 with the common fort, and the feeds ripen in the 



autumn. 



The thirteenth fort grows common in many parts of 

 EnMand, upon dry barren hills. It is commonly call- 

 ed Linum catharticum, purging Flax, and alfo Moun- 

 tain Flax. This rifes with feveral branching flender 

 ftalks about feven or ei^ht inches hi<^h, 2;arni(hed with 



fmall, oval, fpear-fliaped leaves placed cppofite. The 

 flowers are fmall and white, (landing upon pretty long 

 foot-fl;alks, which come out from the fide of the 

 branches, and alfo where they are divided. They ap- 



,nd are fucceeded by fmall round cap- 



a. 



pear in July, 



fules, containing fmall flat feeds v/hich ripen in the 

 autumn. This is one of thofe plants which refufes 

 culture. I have frequently fov/n the feeds both in au- 

 tumn and fpring, but could feldom get up any of the 

 plants, and others who have made the trial have found 



the fame. 



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ers 



The fourteenth fort grows naturally about Montpe- 

 lier, and in fome parts of Italy near the fea. ^r.This 

 rifes with upright ftalks near two feet high, the lower 

 part of which are garniflied with fpear-fhaped leaves 

 placed oppofite, but on the upper part they are alter- 

 nate. The ftalks divide upward into feveral branches, 

 the tops of which are garniflied with yellow flov/ 

 about the fize of thofc of common Flax, which hang 

 dov/nward > thefe are fucceeded by fmall oval cap- 

 fules, containing fmaller feeds than thofe of the com- 

 mon Flax. The flowers appear in July, and the feeds 

 ripen in the autumn. = 



There are feveral other fpecies of Flax which grow 

 wild in the different parts of Europe, but thofe here 

 enumerated are all I have feen growing in the Eng- 

 lifli gardens. *v:.^v .tiVk. k.^v 



The firft fort is that which is cultivated for ufe in di- 

 vers parts of Europe, and is reckoned an excellent 

 commodity i the right tflling and'brdfcring of which, 

 isefteemed a good piece of huflDandry. 



but this is a very v/rong praftice, for if the flieep 

 gnaw or eat the Flax, the plants vnll flioot up very 

 weak, and never come to half the fize they would 

 have, done, if not cropped : and as to the flieep de- 

 ftroying the weeds, they never are fo nice diftin- 

 guifliers, for if they like the crop better than the 

 v/eeds, they will devour that and leave the weeds 

 untouched. ^ /' ^■. ^■^^*' : ^^'' 



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This fliould be cultivated upon a rich foil, that has 

 not been ploughed for fevera.1 years, upon which Flax 

 always makes the beft improvement ; but as it draws 

 greatly from the foil, it fliould not be fown two years 

 together upon the farne ground, nor in lefs than after 

 five or fix years interval^ 



This ground fliould be as clean from weeds as pof- 

 fible ', in order to Iiave it fo, it {hovild be fallowed two 

 wmters and one funimer, obferving to harrow the 

 ground well between each ploughing, particularly in 

 ■ lummer, to deftroy the young Aveeds foon after they 

 appear, that the fmalleft of them may not ftand to ri- 

 Vptn their feed \ this will alfo break the clods, ahd fe- 

 * parate their parts fo, that they, will fall to pieces on 

 v-':.being ftirred. If the land fliould require dung,' that 

 .- vfhould not be laid on till the laft ploughing, when it 

 '^muft be buried in th? ground ; but this dung fliould 

 : be fuch as is clear from the feeds of v/eeds, which it 

 always will be where there is care taken to keep the 

 dunghills clean from weeds, and the places near it ; 

 for fuppofing there fliould be any feeds at firft aniong 

 the dung, yet when it is laid in a heap and well fer- 

 mented, that will deftroy the feeds j but there are few 

 perfons who are careful to keep their dunghills, and 

 the places near them, clean from weeds ; and the 

 feeds of thefe falling on the duno;, are carried upon 

 the land ; from whence fprung that vulgar error, 

 that dung produces weeds, which it can never do, if 



. there is not the feeds mixed with it. - Juft before the 



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Toward the latter end of Auguft or^the beginning 

 of September, the Flax v;ill begin to ripen,* when 

 you muft be careful that It does not ftand to be over 

 ripe; therefore you muft pull ifup as fob'ri as the 

 heads begin to change browrt and hang downwards, 

 otherwife the feeds will foon fcatter and be loft ; fo 

 that the pluckers muft be nimble, and tie it up in 

 handfuls, fetting them upright till they be perfedly 

 dry, and then houfe them. If the Flax be pulled 

 when it firft begins to flower, it will be whiter than 

 if it ftand till the feed is ripe, but then the feed will 

 be loft ; but j:he thread v/ill be ftronger when Flax is 

 left till the feed is ripe, provided it does not ftand too 

 long, but the colour of it will not befo good.. 

 The Siberiari perennial Flax has been made trial of, 

 and anfwers very well for making of coiiimon ftrohg 

 Tmen, but the thread fpun froiri this is not fb fine or : 



' .white as that which is produced from the common 

 fort i but as the roots of this fort will continue many 



'-■^years," To there will be a great faving in the culture, 

 as it will require no other' care but to keep it clin- 

 ftantly clean from weeds ; which cannot be well done, 



.,^,unlefs the feeds are fown in rows, that the ground 



.,,may t)e conftantlyNkepr Iioe3" to deftroy the weeds 

 when young ; for if they are ' ftiffered to grow large, 

 it will be difficult to get tRe'*' ground clean, and they 

 rv/ill weaken the roots. This fort niuft have the ftalks 

 .^cut off' clofe to the grouncl v/hen ripe, an3 tied up in 

 lhi;ill bundles, mariag:incrtKe'm' afterward in the fame 



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way 'as the common fort ; but this feldom-^pYodilces 

 more than three crops, which will pay for ftanding. 

 -jThe eighth fort I received from Iftria, which pro- 

 ' duced the fineft thread of all the forts which' I 



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have tried j and this grows taller than the conimon 

 Flax,' and having a biennial root, may be 

 ,."tTiy6F trial "to fee how. it. will thrive in' the open 

 fields ; for in gardens it lives through the winter with- 

 out receiving the leaft injury from the froft, tlie roots 

 having furvived through the winter^ in the Chelfea 

 garden feveraf years'; and in orcler to "make trial of 

 its goodnefs, I gave a parcel of t.he ftalks of this, as 

 alfo of the Spaniih and Siberian perennial forts, to a 

 perfon who is well fl^illed in" watering, breaking, and 

 drefling of Flax,^ who prepared them, and aflured me, 

 that the Iftrian Flax was'bymuch the fineft of the tTiref , 

 and wa'sin goodnefs preferable to any he had ktn^ „. 



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