304 ON THE CULTIVATION OF FLAX. 



bog- in Ireland." ' — " The soi]," adds Mr. Sprovde, "to which 

 the cultivators of flax in Flanders and the northern ])arts of 

 France give the preference, is strong- loamy land. Strong' 

 clays do not answer well, nor soils of a g-ravelly or dry sandy 

 nature. The climate of Ireland, from its humidity, is well 

 calculated for the growth of flax. Flax, it seems, follows a 

 crop of oats or wheat after a lea, and should not be sown 

 oftener than once in seven years. A fine and deep tilth is 

 very desirable." ^ The seed is sov/n during- April, broadcast, 

 about 2y bushels per acre, and the best comes from Holland 

 or America. The seeds are excellent as an article of food 

 for cattle, and should be consumed on the farm.^ Mr. J. 

 Barker, of Ramsay, says, " I am now feeding- fourteen 

 horses and colts with straw and hay com})Ound. My plan 

 is, to add to 8 bushels of cut hay and 8 bushels of wheat, 

 28 lb. of crushed linseed boiled in 18 pails of water. This I 

 g-ive at nig-ht. In addition, each horse has one pint of pea- 

 meal per day, and 1 cwt. of straw per week." ■* The expense 

 per acre of flax-gTowing- in Ireland is, it appears, ^ 



£ s. d. 



Rent and taxes 2 5 



2} bushels of seed 1 10 



Ploughing and sowing 10 



Weeding, twelve hands at 8 J 8 



Pulling, twelve hands at 1« 12 



Watering, seven hands at Is 7 



Scutching, 70 stone at lOd 2 18 4 



Lifting, &c. Sec, ten hands at Is 10 



Carting to mill and market at Gs. 2(7. per ton. ... 19 8 



£10 



The ordinary produce on the continent is said to be from 

 201. to 30/. per acre ; and much larg-er crops than these 

 have, on rare occasions, been obtained. 



According- to Dr. Kane,^ 100 parts of the dried stem of the 

 flax plant is composed of — 



Carbon 38-72 



Hydrogen 7-33 



Oxygen 48-39 



Nitrogen -50 



Ashes 5* 



' Jonr. R. A. S., vol. v. p. 549. ^ On Flax, p. 9. 



^ Aqricultural Gazette, vol. i. p. 754. " Ibid. p. 789. 



* Ibid. p. 124. ^ Sproule on Flax, p. 38. 



