FLAX OR LINSEED 395 



seed per acre is enough, the smaller amount being used when 

 the seed is drilled in rows 5 or 6 inches apart, the latter when it 

 is broadcasted by hand. 



The seed saved from a partially-ripened crop of flax 

 grown mainly for the fibre, should be used for oil extraction 

 and oilcake manufacture, and not for sowing for another fibre 

 crop. 



The best yield of flax, so far as fibre is concerned, is. said by 

 some to be obtained from seed which has been carefully dried 

 and kept in tightly closed barrels which exclude moisture for two 

 or three years, experiments having shown that seed stored in this 

 way gives longer stems and finer bast than fresh seed ; others 

 consider that the highest yield of fibre is secured from the fully 

 ripened seed, harvested from a crop raised from 'barrel' flax 

 seed. 



Flax seed is readily damaged by heating, especially when 

 damp, and is liable to lose its germinating power very quickly 

 unless care is exercised in its storage. It should have a ger- 

 mination capacity of 90 per cent, at least, and should be sown at 

 a uniform depth on a clean, well-prepared seed bed. 



Harvesting and Yield.— The crop is harvested in different 

 ways, according to the kind of produce required. Where the 

 finest white silky flax is the object, the plants are pulled up soon 

 after the fall of the petals of the flowers, at which time the stems 

 are still green in the upper parts, although the lower half is 

 yellow and has lost its leaves. The seeds in the young capsules 

 are then whitish in colour. Where both seed for oil-crushing 

 and flax are wanted, the crop is taken when the stem and cap- 

 sules have turned yellow, the seeds being then brown and well 

 formed. The iiax produced is greater in bulk but is coarser 

 in texture, and does not become so white when bleached as in 

 the case of plants harvested earlier. 



Where only seed for sowing is needed, it is essential that the 

 plants be allowed to stand until dead ripe. 



