APRIL.] FLAX. 225 



however that may be, in places where the winter is 

 apt to be severe, and where the flax, which is but 

 a tender plant, would of course be in danger of 

 being destroyed during that season, almost all the 

 flax is sown about the end of March, or in the 

 beginning of April. This spring flax is that which 

 will be most particularly spoken of here. 



It may be laid down as a general rule, that the 

 land which is intended for flax should be brought 

 to exceeding fine tilth by repeated ploughings, and 

 that it should be enriched by a manure suited to 

 the quality of the soil. On grass-land some other 

 crops maybe got off the land previous to flax, espe- 

 cially of such plants as do not occupy it long, and 

 particularly of those which are remarkably bene- 

 fited by frequent stirring of the earth whilst they 

 grow ; such as beans, pease, turnips, &c. ; because 

 these repeatec| :% stirrings render the mould fine and 

 loose, and help to kill the weeds, which would 

 otherwise do great damage to the flax. The me- 

 moirs of the Society of Britanny inform us*, 

 that the Livonians, when they clear wood-land, 

 burn the wood upon it, then plough it, and pre- 

 fer it in this state to any other kind of soil for 

 fiax. 



If the land which is intended for flax be stiff, 



* Corps d'Observation de la Societe d' Agriculture de Com- 

 merce et des Artes, etablie per les Etats de Bretagne. An. 17^9 

 et 1760, p. 186. 



a great 



