306 MINOR FIBRE CROPS 



ing process, which is beating with paddles, or combing the fibre 

 through revolving rollers and then through long comb-like rods 

 (Fig. 199). After all of the foreign material is removed, the fibre 

 is ready for sorting and baling. The bales contain about 200 

 pounds each. It is then ready to be spun into thread and woven 

 into cloth. Pure linen is made from the flax fibre, but much of 

 the fibre is combined with cotton during the manufacture. The 

 coarser fibre is called tow and is used for twine, for upholstering 

 and for bagging. 



Flax wilt is the chief enemy of this crop. It is almost com- 

 pletely prevented by treating the seed with formalin solution, 

 which is made by mixing one pound of formalin (40 per cent 

 strength) with 40 gallons of water. Immerse the seed for ten 

 minutes and spread it out to dry before planting. The solution 

 may be applied by sprinkling it on a pile of the seed on a clean 

 barn floor. When the disease is not prevented it stunts the 

 growth of the plant and gives the impression that the soil is 

 deficient in plant food. Growers call it ''flax sick soil." 



HEMP 



This plant has been in cultivation for thousands of years. It 

 belongs to the mulberry family and is related to the hop, osage 

 orange and mulberry tree. It is a native of Central and Western 

 Asia, where it was doubtless first used and from whence it has 

 travelled across the continent of Europe and throughout the world. 

 The crop in this country is produced chiefly in Kentucky and 

 Tennessee, but smaller quantities are produced in New York and 

 Nebraska. 



Hemp is an annual plant and must be grown after spring 

 frost and before fall frost. It has a rank growth reaching a height 

 of eight to twelve feet. Two kinds of flowers are borne upon 

 separate plants. The staminate plants are less branched than the 

 pistillate plants and their fibre is more valuable. 



Any good corn soil will produce a crop of hemp, but in Kentucky 

 and Tennessee it is chiefly grown on the blue grass soils of the 

 central parts of those states where limestone formations are 

 found. Rich nitrogen soils produce increased yields. In America 

 the waste parts of the plant are usually left in the fall and the 

 fibre and seed only are removed. In this way the drain on the 

 soil is very light. 



