20 FLAX CULTURE AND PREPARATION 



Grandchild, and considerable quantities of this variety are 

 also exported to Ireland. 



Holland being geographically much nearer to the British 

 Isles than Russia, the dealers and seed merchants have, 

 obviously, many more opportunities of becoming intimately 

 acquainted with the genealogy and variety of the flax seed 

 offered for sale, and the yield, quality, and fineness of the 

 flax fibre produced in Holland than is possible with Russian 

 productions. Consequently there is always a tendency towards 

 the creation of a higher relative value and the securing of a 

 higher price for Dutch than for Russian seed. 



The chief criticism ever made against Dutch seed is, that 

 since it is primarily grown for fibre the resultant seed may be 

 of secondary importance, but it is worthy of note that Holland 

 exercises great care in the harvesting, saving and cleaning 

 of her flax seed. 



21. The sources of supply of flax seed are now more numerous 

 than prior to the year 1914, or the subsequent Russian revolu- 

 tion. These include English, Irish, Canadian, U.S.A. and 

 Japanese. Experience has proved, and there are many con- 

 vincing evidences that the seed carefully harvested and pre- 

 pared from Irish grown flax is equal in every quality to any 

 seed which can be imported. 



Seed selection for the creation of a good pedigree stock, 

 is usually carried on as follows 



(1) The finest, strongest, longest and best grown flax is 

 selected from a field of growing flax. 



(2) The seeds from these plants, after removal and cleaning 

 by the usual methods, are reserved and sown separately in the 

 following year. 



(3) The best plants grown from the above selected seeds, 

 are again subjected to a further selection, based on the assump- 

 tion that these will be the most capable of resisting attacks 

 of weather or insects. 



(4) See also paragraphs 11 and 90. 



