In this rotation flax never follows turnips, as in Ireland it 

 is considered very objectionable. Again flax in the field only 

 occurs every fourth year and by changing the location from one 

 side of the field to the other, flax does not follow flax for nine 

 years. It will also be observed that flax only occupies two-fifths 

 of the field. Moreover, three out of four years the land is left 

 bare in winter, and subject to leaching and washing out of the 

 fertilizing ingredients from the soil by winter snow and rain. 

 This is one of the objectionable features of European practice, our 

 American system would substitute the following law, "Wherever 

 possible, I would recommend LEGUMINOSE, planted in August 

 or September, and is known by the name of a "Cover Crop," and 

 remains all winter appropriating and storing up leaching fer- 

 tilizers and permanently the stored-up fertilizers by deep plow- 

 ing and covering with the balance of the furrow slice in the early 

 spring, where it will be in an assimiliable condition for the new 

 roots that come within its reach. 



SOIL AND SOIL EXHAUSTION. 



Right here it may not be out of place to refer to a very gen- 

 erally held, though erroneous notion, that flax is very exhaus- 

 tive on the soil, in this connection I cannot do better than quote 

 from C. R. Dodge, report No. 10, on Flax Culture, in the United 

 States, published by the U. S. Department of Agriculture, in 

 which Mr. Eugene Boss, a leading authority on the subject, 

 states as follows, "There is a strong prejudice among some peo- 

 ple against the culture of flax, they say flax is hard on the land. 

 I am painfully impressed in regard to the wisdom of those who 

 advocate such an untrue thing, because of their ignorance of the 

 composition of the plant, its habits and needs. Yes, the flax is 

 hard on the land, when the farmer plows his land shallow, sows 

 it thinly, and allows the weeds too much room to fill the space, 

 THEN IT IS NOT THE FLAX THAT RUINS THE LAND, BUT 

 THAT VERY RAPACIOUS ENEMY, THE WEEDS. PLOW THE 

 LAND SHALLOW, AND YOU DO NOT LET THE PLANT 

 FOLLOW ITS NATURAL COURSE. YOU FORCE ITS ROOTS 

 TO FEED ON THE SURFACE, AND THERE LIES ONE OF THE 

 REASONS WHY FLAX, AS COMMONLY CULTIVATED, RE- 

 MAINS SHORT AND DRIES UP INSTEAD OF RIPENING NAT- 

 URALLY. THE MOISTURE IT SO MUCH REQUIRES, IS TOO 

 QUICKLY ABSORBED. IT IS TRUE I HAVE SEEN FIELDS 

 OF PRETTY LONG FLAX THAT HAVE BEEN SOWN ON VERY 

 SHALLOW LAND, BUT THAT LAND WAS VERY RICH OR 

 VERY OPEN, WITH A PROPITIOUS SEASON. I DENY THAT 

 FLAX IS HARDER ON LAND THAN WHEAT, RYE, OATS, OR 

 BARLEY, WHEN SIMILARLY CULTIVATED, IT WANTS A 

 DEEP SOIL TEN OR TWELVE INCHES AT LEAST. Thorough- 

 ly pulverized in order to allow its main root to go straight down 



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