282 



SOILS AND PLANT LIFE 



The value of the hnt lies in its cheapness, flexibility, 

 uniformity and wearing qualities. It is spun and woven 

 with ease into nearly all kinds of fabrics. 



The hulls of the seeds are used for fuel, as a fertihzer, 

 as a feed for cattle, and for paper stock, while the oil is 

 used in the manufacture of oleomargarine, as a substitute 

 for olive oil, in lard compounds and for other culinary 

 purposes. The cake left after the oil is extracted, or 

 the meal made from it, is used as a feed for stock and 

 as a fertilizer. 



Flax 



214. How and where Flax is grown. — The production 

 of flax has moved westward and northward as the newer 

 parts of the Mississippi 

 Valley have been set- 

 tled. The pioneers 

 have broken up the 

 prairie sod, and while 

 they were waiting for 

 it to decay sufficiently 

 for wheat to grow, they 

 have raised a crop of 

 flax. This new land 

 has hitherto been 

 abundant enough to 

 supply the amount of 

 flax required in this 

 country. 



Flax thrives and is 

 raised principally in 

 northern Europe, 

 where a cool, moist 

 atmosphere exists. This explains in part why the states 

 of Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota produce 

 the greater part of the crop raised in this country. 



Fig. 124. — Flax plant and fiber. 



