QUESTIONS 243 



two to three pecks per acre. When sown thin it branches freely, the 

 seed balls being mostly borne at the ends of little terminal branches. 



For fiber it should be sown so thickly that all branching is pre- 

 vented, producing only long straight stems. From five to ten pecks 

 per acre are sown for fiber. 



Harvesting. Flax seldom all ripens uniformly and judgment 

 must be used to harvest, when the highest percentage of seed balls are 

 ripe at one time. Flax may be cut with a self-binder, but it is still 

 common practice to leave it unbound in loose gavels. When cured 

 it is threshed directly from the field or stacked. 



For fiber the flax is pulled by hand for best grade of white fiber, 

 as the cut ends are apt to become discolored. For extracting the 

 fiber the straw is first allowed to rot, by lying in the field for several 

 weeks or actually placing under water. This process is called " ret- 

 ting." The fiber, however, is not affected by the retting, and can be 

 separated by breaking, beating, and combing out the decomposed 

 material. 



Diseases. The most destructive disease of the flax plant is 

 wilt. This is a parasitic disease attacking the stems, cutting off the 

 natural water supply of the plant and causing it to wilt. The dis- 

 ease is carried over in old stems, seeds, and will also live in the soil 

 for five or six years. Where wilt is prevalent flax should not be 

 grown on the same ground oftener than once in six years. The seed 

 should be carefully fanned to remove diseased seeds, and treated with 

 formalin solution to kill adhering spores. One pound formalin 

 to forty gallons of water is the recommended strength. 



QUESTIONS 



1. What are the principal uses of flax? 



2. Where most extensively grown (a) for seed; (&) for fiber? 



3. Name the leading States in flax production. 



4. Describe a cultivated flax plant. 



5. In composition compare with wheat. 



6. How is the oil extracted? 



7. What is the oil cake used for? 



8. Describe structure of a flax stem. 



9. What per cent is pure fiber? 



10. Give the best conditions for growing seed ; fiber. 



11. Why is flax often grown on new prairie land? 



12. Compare the culture of flax for seed purposes and when grown for fiber. 



13. Describe harvesting flax for seed; for fiber. 



14. How is fiber separated? 



15. How is flax wilt controlled? 



