CULTIVATION. Flax will grow in almost any part of the United States, but it needs a strong, rich soil and careful manipulation at every stage of its production and manufacture. The heavier soils, when well drained and of proper fertility, are preferable to sandy loams; wet soils will be fatal to success. In general. a deep, moist, strong loam upon upland and free from weed-seeds, which must be avoided above all things, will give best results. As far as possible weeds should be eliminated by previous cultiva tion. Flax is believed to make heavier demands upon the soil than does any other crop. and for this reason it is frequently called exhaustive. in Belgium and other flax-growing countries, where land has been under cultivation for generations, stable manure, which has been well rotted to avoid the danger of fouling the land with weeds, is applied before winter sets in. Previous to sowing time in spring the ground is heavily treated with fertilizers.
Flax demands a greater amount of labor than almost any other crop. and unless extreme care be exercised in every step the value of the crop for fibre will be seriously impaired. Much de
pends on the thickness of sowing. For a fine fibre flax must be sown thickly and he pulled before the seed is ripe: for a coarse fibre it may be given more room and the seed allowed to reach approximate but not the hard stage known as 'dead ripeness.' Coarse fibre and a crop of seed arc often preferred by the grower to a crop of fine fibre alone. a departure that experience at home and abroad will countenance. especially since the disproving of the assertion that good fibre and seed cannot be produced by the same plant. Still, flax should be grown with a view of getting from the land a line quality of fibre, while the seed, which ought to be a factor of profit. should be saved. Usually the crop is pulled, roots and all, by hand, hut if the ground he smooth it may be cut with a mower.. the implement used when seed alone is passed through an ordinary threshing-machinc; but since this tangles and breaks the fibre, it must not be used if the fibre is to be saved.