226 FIELD CROPS 



species are occasionally cultivated in other parts of the world 

 and a number of species grow wild in America and elsewhere. 

 Our common flax is an annual, with a single upright stem 

 and a long taproot with few small branches. The number 

 of the basal branches and the length of the fruiting branches of 

 the stem depend largely on the thickness of seeding. Plants 



Figure 84. — Field of flax in bluuin. 



which have plenty of room to develop will produce numer- 

 ous branches, while those that are crowded branch little or 

 not at all, except for the branches of the panicle. The flax 

 plant grows from 12 to 36 inches high, the length of straw 

 depending on the variety, the soil, and the season. The 

 leaves are alternate, lanceolate, from one half to one and 

 one half inches long. The flowers are produced in a leafy 

 terminal panicle; the flower parts are in fives, the flowers 

 themselves being about a half inch across and usually of a 

 light blue color. The rounded capsules contain eight or 

 ten seeds, which are usually light brown in color; they are 

 flattened and have a smooth, shining or polished surface. 



